The World Bank estimates the cost of rebuilding Ukraine at US$411 billion

Kateryna Klochko Associated Press A multi-storey residential building was damaged by a Russian missile in the city of Zaporizhia, southeastern Ukraine, on March 22, 2023.

A World Bank report released Wednesday puts the cost of recovering and rebuilding Ukraine from the Russian invasion at US$411 billion over the next decade, the cost of cleaning up the rubble of war s alone amounting to US$5 billion.

The report details some of Russia's war toll in Ukraine: at least 9,655 confirmed civilians dead, including 461 children; nearly two million homes damaged; more than one in five public health facilities damaged; and 650 damaged or stolen ambulances.

In total, the World Bank has so far calculated US$135 billion in direct damage to buildings and infrastructure, not including broader economic damage.

The damage would be even worse without the strong defense mounted by the Ukrainian forces, underlined Anna Bjerde, vice-president of the World Bank for Europe and Central Asia, during a press conference. She said the worst damage was limited to the frontline regions of Donetsk, Kharkiv, Luhansk and Kherson.

As it stands, according to the World Bank, the Russian invasion has wiped out 15 years of economic progress in Ukraine, reducing Ukraine's gross domestic product by 29% and plunging 1.7 million Ukrainians into poverty. poverty.

This assessment was carried out by the Government of Ukraine, the World Bank Group, the European Commission and the United Nations. The findings are intended to guide planning for the funding and implementation of what is an ongoing recovery effort in Ukraine.

The report says it is essential that Ukraine's government, private businesses and recovery efforts continue even as bombs fall and fighting persists. Postponement of reconstruction and support “risks leading to a situation of little or no growth and enormous social challenges once the war is over,” the report says.

The Ukrainian energy has recently seen the largest increase in damage, following targeted Russian strikes on the power grid and other energy hubs over the winter. The total damage to the energy sector is now five times greater than it was last summer, the World Bank said.

Looking longer term, officials have estimated a multi-billion dollar cost to Ukraine's economy just from the many ways the war has disrupted education. This includes the more than two million children believed to have fled the country.