KfW and the EIB are therefore supporting the TUMO Center in Ukraine with a donation totaling EUR 125,000. The money will enable a large number of young Ukrainian refugees to continue taking part in the TUMO education programme – now online – after the TUMO Kyiv Center for Creative Technologies had to be closed in March 2022.
“Education must not be lost in sight of all the challenges posed by the war in Ukraine. TUMO Kyiv helps young people from Ukraine to stay ‘on the ball․՛ Regardless of their current location, they are taught in Ukrainian, as usual,” emphasized Stefan Wintels, CEO of KfW Group.
EIB President Werner Hoyer was enthusiastic about the concept, adding: “The students are responsible for their own learning, supported by qualified trainers. It is not only about technology, but also about responsibility. The courses in Ukrainian make it easier for young people to prepare for their choice of work and career despite the burdens of war and being refugees.”
TUMO was established in 2011 by the Simonian Educational Foundation in Armenia. It is an inclusive digital education programme that teaches creative digital skills (programming, animation, game development, music, film, 3D modelling, graphic design) to young people between 12–18 years of age. There are already 11 TUMO Centers in seven countries worldwide, one of which is in Berlin.
The donation is part of the “Care for Ukraine Refugees” initiative, which was approved jointly by the national promotional banks BGK (Poland), CDC (France), CDP (Italy), ICO (Spain), KfW and the EIB in March 2022. The initiative collects projects and financing that benefit internally displaced Ukrainians and refugees, and has now reached a volume of EUR 2.9 billion. KfW and the EIB contribute to the promotion of the forward-looking, innovative TUMO concept, thus setting yet another example for cooperative partnerships.
