Building a Financially Literate Generation: Policy Innovations for Post-War Ukraine

Ukraine’s post-war recovery creates both an imperative and an opportunity to rebuild youth financial capability as a strategic component of human capital and economic resilience. The aim of the article is to identify policy innovations that strengthen youth financial literacy in post-war Ukraine, with a focus on digital inclusion, behavioral design, and cross-sector ecosystem partnerships aligned with EU/OECD standards. The methodology employs a mixed comparative design that analyzes OECD/INFE and EU frameworks alongside Ukraine’s National Strategy for Financial Literacy 2020–2025; benchmarks Ukraine against three EU models (Finland-curriculum-embedded, Poland - teacher-centered scaling, Estonia-digital-first); and applies an evaluation scheme specifying a 12–18-month roadmap with input–process–output–outcome indicators to assess implementation and impact. Evidence converges on a systemic approach in which curriculum embedding, teacher professionalization, and a digital-first platform (microlearning, simulators, just-in-time nudges) are coupled with robust monitoring and evaluation and equity-by-design measures for rural youth, IDPs, first-generation students, and young women. Comparative insights show higher effectiveness where policy coherence is matched by institutional integration and measured outcomes; targeted investments in governance, staff capacity, and inclusive digital access yield compounding gains. The proposed architecture - National Coordination Council co-chaired by NBU/MoES, regional university hubs, and a unified platform (FinRez) - supports scale, quality assurance, and privacy-by-design analytics. Building a financially literate generation requires policy that is balanced (education + consumer protection + behavioral design), embedded (curriculum + teacher training + budgeting), and evidenced (behavioral/outcome indicators). Implementing this integrated model can accelerate equitable recovery and align Ukraine with EU/OECD standards.