Koval: Ukraine needs to immediately allocate UAH 1-1.5 bln to revive book industry

Ukrainian Book Institute head Oleksandra Koval has called on the government to immediately allocate UAH 1-1.5 billion to revive the country's book industry, which is being deliberately destroyed by Russia. Since the outbreak of the war, Russia has targeted publishing houses, printing plants, warehouses, and libraries, resulting in the loss of 8-12 million books, with the exact number still unknown.

Reprinting these books, if rights and layouts can be preserved, would cost UAH 1-1.5 billion. Koval believes that the losses and costs of restoring destroyed book infrastructure amount to billions of hryvnias. She emphasizes that books are the foundation and strength of every nation, preserving collective memory and national identity.

Koval proposes rapidly channeling funds into the book ecosystem, primarily by purchasing books to replenish public library collections. Currently, public libraries have only 110 million copies, with 40-50% still of Russian origin. Koval suggests expanding the eBook program to include parents of newborns, later extending it to children and adults up to age 25, and lifting the ban on subsidies for bookstores until martial law ends.

The Ministry of Culture is exploring ways to resume the program to replenish public library collections, while the Ministry of Education is working on renovating and restocking school library collections, with plans to extend the Tysiachovesna state initiative to the book sector in 2027.