KYIV, May 30 – More than 2,000 hectares of agricultural land have been returned to use under Ukraine's state program to reimburse demining costs, the Ministry of Economy reported.

In May 2025 alone, six contracts totaling nearly UAH 35 million were finalized, covering six plots of land amounting to 626.7 hectares: three in Mykolaiv region, two in Kharkiv region, and one in Kyiv region.

"One of the most meaningful returns is in the Shevchenkove community of Kharkiv region. These 86 hectares were the first offered for auction by the Humanitarian Demining Center last autumn, resulting in its first contract. Over more than six months, sappers removed 64 explosive items from the site, including unguided rockets, artillery shells, mortar rounds, and unexploded cluster munitions. What was once a deadly minefield will now be planted with crops," said Deputy Economy Minister Ihor Bezkaravainy, as quoted by the ministry.

He added that farmers who have already demined part of their land through the program are now applying for clearance of additional contaminated fields – clear evidence, he said, that the mechanism is effective. (om/ez)