Ukraine’s Culture Ministry launches grant fund for war‑hit small publishers

The Reader Times desk 30 October 2026 Based on Literary Hub reporting

Imagined historical book-fair hall under a glass roof with stalls, banners and visitors; an illustration, not the reported event. — Editorial illustration for The Reader Times.

The Ministry of Culture, with partners, is creating a $500,000 grant programme to aid Ukrainian indie presses that lost inventory in recent Russian strikes.

The Ukrainian Ministry of Culture announced a new grant programme aimed at small publishers that have been crippled by the war.

Working with the KSE Foundation, the Ukrainian Book Institute and the International Book Arsenal Festival, the fund will target presses that release up to 20 titles a year, according to Deputy Minister of Culture Bohdana Laiuk.

Recent Russian attacks destroyed roughly 13 million books – about one‑third of the 2025 print run – leaving many independent houses without the resources to reprint lost stock.

The KSE Foundation will administer the fund, with an open call for applications expected in November and a deadline at the end of the year. The first round aims to support up to 20 projects, pending the fund’s $500,000 target.

While the grant is still fundraising, individual and corporate donors can contribute via the KSE Foundation’s information page.