“Agriculture is challenging, but it is also cool,” says Ukrainian veteran Mykola Salamakha. “It’s very mind-clearing, and when I returned from the war, the first thing my wife and I did was clear our land plot.”
That simple act planted the seed for a new chapter. Mykola enlisted on day one of the full-scale invasion, spent a year and a half on the front lines, and returned home — only to face the next battle: unemployment.
Now, Go2Agro is stepping up to turn the tide. This civil society initiative helps veterans carve out new careers in Ukraine’s agricultural sector, guiding them from battlefield skills to farm-ready expertise and landing jobs with the country’s top agribusinesses.
“I rested and found myself again,” says Mykola, one of the first to join the project, alongside 400 other veterans.
The war-torn breadbasket of Europe
Before the full-scale invasion, Ukraine was one of the world’s largest agricultural exporters, supplying food to 400 million people globally — one in 20 people worldwide. The country ranked among the top food exporters, providing over 10% of the world’s wheat, 15% of its corn and barley, and nearly 50% of sunflower oil in international markets.
Despite fueling 40% of Ukraine’s exports, agriculture has long been hit with chronic understaffing. Slow modernization, arid climate, and limited state support turned farming into a high-risk gamble, pushing workers toward more lucrative sectors like IT and industry. The introduction of visa-free travel to the EU in 2017 only deepened the crisis, driving even more workers to seek employment abroad
Russia’s full-scale invasion worsened the crisis even further, as the Kremlin deliberately targeted Ukraine’s profitable agricultural sector. In just three years, Russia destroyed 10% of the country’s grain storage network and looted enough food supplies to feed over 5 million people for a year while also cutting off the vital Black Sea export routes.
Conscription, war trauma, and the widespread mine contamination — particularly in the country’s most fertile agricultural regions in the south and north — have further strained the situation. With up to a quarter of Ukraine’s land — roughly the size of Greece — now heavily mined, the challenge remains dire.
From the frontlines to the fields
Besides ravaging Ukraine’s agriculture, the all-out war has thrown veterans’ lives into disarray, making it difficult for many to transition back into civilian life. As of 2024, over 30% of veterans face unemployment, according to the Ukrainian Veterans Fund (UVF). With 1.3 million veterans in the country by July 2024, that leaves nearly 910,000 struggling to find a job.
Ruslana Velychko-Tryfoniuk, acting executive director of the UVF Foundation, highlights three major obstacles veterans face in their reintegration: society’s lack of understanding (63.32%), physical health struggles (63.61%), and psychological challenges (50.57%). The psychological toll often stems from self-doubt, as many veterans feel the world has moved on without them while they were on the frontlines.
In response, Ukraine’s civil society stepped up to tackle the crisis. Key players, including the Superhumans war trauma center, which has pioneered prosthetics, reconstructive surgery, and rehabilitation in Ukraine since its launch in 2023, joined forces with the educational platform Kultyvariy and agricultural media giant Latifundist to launch Go2Agro.
The project gives veterans a clear, step-by-step path to economic integration into the country’s agricultural sector. Through hands-on training, followed by job placements or the chance to start their own business, it tackles two key issues: filling the agricultural workforce gap and offering veterans a chance to rebuild their lives with meaningful employment.
The project initially set out to help 300 veterans find employment or start their own businesses in the agricultural sector, but its early success has raised the bar. With 400 veterans already completing the program’s courses and consultations, the new goal is to graduate 1,000 participants by April 2025.
“The initiative connects veterans’ military experience with civilian opportunities in agriculture,” the team says, emphasizing that Go2Agro welcomes participants regardless of their health status or prior experience in agriculture.
Military skills meet agriculture
For those new to agriculture, Go2Agro offers foundational training courses alongside a strong support system, guiding participants from learning the basics to crafting resumes and landing jobs with veteran-friendly companies.
The program was that launched by recruiting nine career consultants across Ukraine’s regions to serve as key intermediaries between agricultural companies and veterans throughout the hiring process. Major agricultural holdings in Ukraine have already partnered with the initiative, pledging fellowships and potential job opportunities for veterans who meet the criteria.
To ensure accessibility nationwide, Go2Agro operates in key cities across all regions — from Kyiv in the north to Ternopil and Lviv in the west and Odesa in the south. Career consultants in these locations provide personalized guidance, helping veterans translate their military experience into competitive civilian qualifications.
Veterans with prior agricultural experience can take specialized training to sharpen their skills or transition into higher-demand areas, with guaranteed internships for hands-on learning. Meanwhile, those who have already launched their own agricultural businesses can access consultations and development support to help scale their operations.
“I don’t have much time for traditional lectures, so we developed a collaborative format,” says Vasyl Stefurak, head of the Ukrainian Shepherds Association and one of the program’s mentors. “We compiled a list of key questions and created about three hours of material.”
Veterans who complete this introductory course and want to start a shepherding business can contact Stefurak for further guidance. A similar mentorship model is available for other niche farming sectors with low competition, giving veterans a market advantage when launching their businesses.
Additionally, the program removes financial barriers by offering its services at no cost. Agricultural equipment suppliers fund the technical training and provide free access to modern machinery, ensuring veterans gain hands-on experience with advanced technology that might otherwise be out of reach.
“During the war, veterans develop a diverse range of skills that can give them an edge in the job market,” says Viktoria Kalyniak, Go2Agro project manager. “These include stress resilience, organization, responsibility, technical expertise, and equipment handling.”
Sowing innovation, reaping opportunity
Despite years of understaffing, the minds behind Go2Agro believe the agricultural sector’s value is poised to soar. The importance of Ukrainian agriculture became undeniable in 2022, especially when Russia’s blockade of Black Sea ports set off global food price hikes and exacerbated food insecurity in Africa and the Middle East — regions heavily reliant on Ukraine’s grain exports.
This growing awareness, combined with the need to tackle the workforce shortage, has spurred rapid technological advancements in the sector. In some agricultural enterprises, skilled tractor operators handling cutting-edge machinery now earn more than entry-level IT specialists.
“Agriculture is like the ‘old IT’ — you can earn a great salary and build an amazing career in a relatively short time without spending years learning programming languages,” Viktoria Kalyniak says.
Yet, despite the program’s promising prospects, it hit unexpected financial hurdles. When the Trump administration suspended most USAID projects, including those supporting Ukraine, the second phase of Go2Agro was forced to pause. Now, the program’s managers are actively seeking alternative funding to keep it running.
Plowing ahead
The project is already yielding results, changing the lives of veterans. Mykola Salamaha, who cleared his land after his service, has launched a small blackberry-growing business. He says he joined Go2Agro to gain the skills necessary to expand his berry cultivation.
“During the training, we have the opportunity to meet successful experienced farmers,” he said. “We learned about the scale of investments in starting a greenhouse business and the specifics of growing greenhouse crops.”
He adds that, despite the challenges, agriculture has helped him rediscover himself and find peace within.
“Life passes by, and you want to create something that will be left behind for the next generation,” Mykola adds.
