28 March 2017

The Ukrainian State Border Guard Service has started recruiting some 800 staff to serve at the two major entry points to Ukraine under a new IOM-supported initiative which was launched today at Boryspil airport near Kyiv. 

"Assisting the Ukrainian State Border Guard Service to find new staff among young people with a good command of English, through a transparent recruitment system, including use of a lie-detector, is very important for the Service’s anti-corruption efforts and its transformation into a modern law enforcement agency based on the best European standards and practices,” said IOM Ukraine Chief of Mission, Manfred Profazi.

Head of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine, General-Colonel Victor Nazarenko noted “over 60 per cent of the newly recruited border guards will be selected from external candidates through a new competence-based e-recruitment system.”

Boryspil airport and Krakovets on the Ukraine/Poland border are among the major entry points to Ukraine, with 17,000 and 10,000 travellers passing through them daily.

“In the nearest future, the staff of seven more border divisions in the West, East, and South of Ukraine will be reformed along similar lines,” General Nazarenko said at today’s launch. “We are very grateful to our partners for funding and expert assistance they have provided,” he added.

IOM supported this reform with funding from the U.S. Department of State by providing software and hardware for the e-recruitment system, developing modern selection procedures, updating training programmes for border guards, including English language courses, and assisting with recruitment advertising. IOM also facilitates engagement of the EU and national experts to ensure transparency and impartiality of the recruitment process.

Over the 20 years of its work in Ukraine, IOM has been providing assistance to the Ukrainian Government in developing a comprehensive migration and border management systems. This has included assisting the State Border Guard Service with enhancement of its legal framework, institutional setting and human resources management, as well as improving its infrastructure and equipment.