Only 4% of Ukrainians spent the ‘Vova’s thousand’ on donations to the Armed Forces

Ukraine’s Minister of Digital Transformation, Mykhailo Fedorov, detailed how Ukrainian citizens are spending the one-time payment of 1,000 hryvnias under the “Winter eSupport” program.

He shared the information in a post on his Telegram channel.

According to the minister, only 4% of Ukrainians used the “Volodymyr’s thousand” for donations to the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The majority (63%) spent the aid on utility payments.

Another 17% used the funds for mobile services.

In total, 1.8 million adults and 520,000 children have already received the payment, while nearly 7 million people have applied for it.

Two days ago, it was reported that Ukrainians had found ways to cash out the payments from the “Winter eSupport” program. Some topped up their mobile accounts and then requested a refund. This option was available to Vodafone and Life subscribers but had to be discontinued due to the new cashing-out scheme.

In early December, the American newspaper *The New York Times* described the distribution of the “Volodymyr’s thousand” as populism and election preparation. The “populist move” was primarily targeted at pensioners, who make up a 10-million-strong voting base.