Ukraine is one of the countries most affected by air pollution in Europe. According to the latest data, the average annual exposure to atmospheric particulate matter with diameter <2.5 μm (PM2.5) was 20.3 µg/m3, ranking 9th highest in Europe. According to the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) database in 2019, 42,900 premature deaths in Ukraine were related to air pollution, which corresponds to about 10% of all cases of morbidity and mortality.

In the large cities of Ukraine where the air quality is clearly suboptimal, improving the quality of air to a level considered as “good” could prevent up to a third of all strokes and cases of chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder.

UNDP conducted an assessment of health impacts and social costs associated with air pollution in large urban areas of Ukraine. The goals of the evaluation were:

1)  Examine the present situation on air pollution and quantify the attributable health burden, both nationally and to a feasible extent in different regions of Ukraine;

2)  Estimate the economic loss related to the health conditions impaired through air pollution; and

3) Make future projections for the health and economic burden under various scenarios related to interventions on air quality

The report was prepared by UNDP with the support of the Sustainability of Health in Procurement (SHiPP) project funded by Sida.