Salary increase and housing restoration: Mykolaiv residents answered that, in their opinion, it would help to return the citizens who left after the war

Jazz at sunset in Mykolaiv, June 2024. Photo: NikVesti

More than half of Mykolaiv residents surveyed believe that raising wages (43%) and restoring destroyed housing (35%) will help to return citizens who have left Mykolaiv since the start of the full-scale war.

This is evidenced by the results of a survey conducted by the Sociological Group «Rating» on the order of the International Republican Institute (IRI) in April-May 2024, writes NikVesti. In the survey, residents of Mykolaiv had the opportunity to choose up to two answers to the question.

Another 18% believe that effective anti-corruption measures can help return Mykolaiv residents to the city, and 19% — free retraining programs for future employment in the city. The townspeople also believe that joining the EU (12%) and NATO (10%) will help this.

The results of the survey conducted by the Sociological group «Rating», screenshot

Another part of the citizens believe that entrepreneurship support programs (6%), improved conditions for buying the first real estate (6%), increased maternity benefits (5%) and improved conditions for professional development (3%) will help the return. And 8% did not find an answer to the question.

As of May 2024, the number of Mykolaiv residents is about 430,000 people. Before the invasion, the city had a population of 500,000.

In order to fully restore the population, the mayor of Mykolaiv Oleksandr Sienkevych believes that two main problems must be solved: to provide the city with drinking water and to start face-to-face education.

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The survey was conducted by the Sociological group «Rating» on the order of the Center for Analysis and Sociological Research of the International Republican Institute in 21 cities of Ukraine (Kyiv and all regional centers where the security situation allowed conducting the survey) from April 13 to May 14, 2024, using face-to-face interviews at respondents' homes. The sample consisted of 16,800 citizens aged 18 and over.

The resulting data in each city were weighted by gender and age using national statistics (as of January 1, 2022). The statistical error for each city does not exceed ±3.5%. The average reach of respondents was 49%. The survey was conducted with the financial support of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

Survey of residents of Mykolaiv in 2023

Last year, a survey by the Sociological Group «Rating» commissioned by the International Republican Institute (IRI) showed that 92% of Mykolaiv residents are proud to be residents of this city. Most of them answered that they do not plan to leave the city in the event of a military escalation.

The survey also showed that almost half of the residents of Mykolaiv (47%) assess the condition of bomb shelters in the city as terrible or bad.

Last year, Mykolaiv residents also responded that they approve of the activities of Vitalii Kim, the head of the RMA. The level of positive attitude towards the administration is the highest among the cities of Ukraine. Attitudes toward Mayor Oleksandr Sienkevych were almost equally divided among those interviewed.

About 56% of Mykolaiv residents also answered that their family's economic situation has worsened over the past 12 months. At the same time, 13%, on the contrary, note an improvement.

Survey of residents of Mykolaiv in 2024

An analytical survey in 2024 showed that 18% of Mykolaiv residents do not know whether they will leave the city in the event of another Russian offensive to the south, and 43% of Mykolaiv residents believe that things in the city are going in the wrong direction.

Also, the approval rating of the Mykolaiv Regional Military Administration decreased from 73% in 2023 to 48% in 2024. And 36% of locals approve of the activities of the Mykolayiv mayor.

After that, the mayor Oleksandr Sienkevych reacted to the results of the annual municipal survey. He declared the responsibility of the media for the formation of negative «moods» among the population.

65% of Mykolaiv residents answered that they are interested in information about how much money the local government received for reconstruction and how it was spent. At the same time, the citizens rated the quality of the provided services as average : the state of medicine, protective shelters, the work of the police, hospitals and educational institutions.

Almost half of Mykolaiv residents believe that the economic situation in Ukraine will worsen in the next 12 months.