She Drives develops regional partnerships to attract women to the transportation industry

She Drives is looking for practical solutions together with regional partners – employers, authorities, vocational education institutions, driving schools, employment centers and public organizations.

In July and August, the project team conducted four regional working missions – in Odessa, Dnipro, Lviv and Cherkasy. The focus of each meeting was on the real needs of transport enterprises, opportunities for professional training for women and ways to their further employment.

Odesa: partnership as a response to the personnel shortage

On July 27, the regional working mission visited the Odessa Regional State (Military) Administration. The meeting was attended by representatives of local authorities, municipal and private transport enterprises, vocational education institutions, international partners and the expert community.

The participants spoke about the personnel situation in the transport industry, the needs of employers, opportunities for professional retraining of women and mechanisms for cooperation between key partners.

The She Drives team presented the capabilities of She Drives 2.0 and approaches to involving transport enterprises in the project. Special attention was paid to institutional support for employers and interaction between authorities, carriers, educational institutions and other partners.

Following the meeting, the parties identified further steps, responsible persons and mechanisms for involving transport enterprises in the project.

Dnipro: from training to specific jobs

On August 5, a regional working mission “She Drives: developing partnerships to involve women in the field of municipal transport” was held in Dnipro.

Representatives of the city authorities, municipal and private enterprises, vocational education institutions and the employment center joined the conversation.

One of the key topics was the personnel needs of municipal transport. Representatives of the Dnipro Electric Transport Commune spoke about current vacancies and opportunities for involving women in the profession of drivers.

An important result of the meeting was the signing of a memorandum of cooperation. The partnership involves developing the company's human resources, creating conditions for professional training and further employment of women, as well as creating a safe, decent and accessible working environment without discrimination.

The mission participants also discussed the situation in the private sector, employment opportunities for women after completing their studies, and joint solutions to overcome the personnel shortage.

Lviv: employers are already proving that it works

On August 7, the She Drives regional working mission visited the Lviv City Council. The meeting was attended by representatives of the Lviv City Council's transport department, municipal and private transport enterprises, vocational education institutions, and women's public organizations.

The She Drives team presented She Drives 2.0 and, together with partners, identified the personnel needs of transport enterprises and opportunities for attracting women.

Representatives of Lviv ATP No. 1 spoke about the current needs. Representatives of FlixBus and KLRBus, companies where She Drives graduates already work, also took part in the discussion. This experience is especially important for the project: professional training can be the first step towards real employment and further professional development of women in the transport industry.

As a result of the working mission, memorandums of cooperation were signed with Lviv ATP No. 1 and KP "Lvivelectrotrans".

Women's public organizations of the Lviv region, in particular the All-Ukrainian Public Union "All-Ukrainian Union of Women of Ukraine", NGO "Union of Women of Lviv Region", NGO "Women's Perspectives" and NGO "Smarta", will help to better take into account the needs of women considering a change of profession and disseminate information about training and employment opportunities.

Cherkasy: new opportunities for female trolleybus drivers

Another important area of ​​partnership work is expanding opportunities for women in electric transport.

In Cherkasy, the project team visited the Cherkasy Electrotrans KP of the Cherkasy City Council. Following the meeting, the parties signed a memorandum of cooperation.

The partnership involves joint work on attracting women to the profession of trolleybus drivers, organizing professional training and creating opportunities for further employment.

This approach allows us to take into account the specifics of each region and the needs of specific employers. She Drives works directly with transport enterprises so that professional training meets real demand on the labor market.

Partnerships are the basis of the She Drives project

The four regional missions are united by a common need: transport enterprises need new qualified employees, and women need affordable opportunities for professional training, employment and career development.

“It is important for us to expand the network of partners in the regions. We strive for as many transport enterprises as possible to be ready to open up employment opportunities for our graduates. That is why such working meetings are a platform for dialogue, because they are help to better understand the needs of employers and build long-term cooperation. At the same time, we see the potential of cooperation with enterprises in a broader context - the implementation of the Principles of Women's Empowerment. This is not only about equal access to the profession, but also about creating an inclusive working environment where women can study, work and develop professionally,” said Kateryna Datsko, Executive Director of the NGO “Institutional Development Foundation”.

That is why She Drives works not only with potential participants. The project unites the entire ecosystem necessary for sustainable employment of women: employers, vocational education institutions, local governments, employment centers and public organizations.

The results of regional missions to Odessa, Dnipro, Lviv and Cherkasy prove that partnerships can become a practical tool for simultaneously strengthening the human resources potential of the transport industry and expanding women's professional opportunities. And the experience of employers who are already employing She Drives graduates shows that the profession of a driver is a real opportunity for women, and their presence in the transport industry meets the needs of the labor market.

She Drives continues to expand its partner network and invites transport companies, driving schools, vocational education institutions, local governments, employment centers, public and women's organizations to cooperate.

Do you want to become a partner of the project? Fill out the questionnaire on the She Drives website: https://www.she-drives.com.ua/uk/forms/partner 

The recruitment of women for free vocational training with subsequent employment is ongoing until August 31, 2026. Details and the participant's questionnaire are on the She Drives website: https://www.she-drives.com.ua/uk 

Photo: Kryuchenko Heorhiy, Malenko Yuriy, Poryvayev Yuriy, Lyudmila Skrynska

The “She Drives” initiative, which aims to expand the professional potential of women in the transportation sector, is implemented within the framework of UN Women Ukraine’s Strategic Note (2025–2029), with financial support from the Governments of Austria, Denmark, Norway, Poland, Finland, France, and Sweden. The project is implemented in partnership with the Ministry of Recovery, Infrastructure, and Transport of Ukraine and the NGO “Foundation for Institutional Development”.