School holidays in Kyiv extended until 1 February

Winter holidays in Kyiv's general secondary education institutions have been extended until 1 February 2026.

Source: Denys Shmyhal, First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Energy, during a session of the Verkhovna Rada (Ukrainian parliament)

Details: The decision was taken amid an emergency situation in the country's energy sector following the latest Russian strikes.

Earlier, Ukraine's Ministry of Education and Science said that holidays would be extended and that educational institutions might switch to online learning or temporarily suspend in-person classes until the end of January.

"Due to the ongoing emergency, the government has temporarily suspended in-person learning across preschools, secondary schools, vocational and pre-tertiary institutions, and universities, depending on the security situation in each region," the Ministry of Education and Science said.

Executive authorities and oblast military administrations are to take measures to organise online learning or extend holidays.

The ministry also noted separately that Kyiv City State Administration must either extend or introduce winter holidays in the capital's schools until 1 February 2026.

Meanwhile, Kyiv's preschool institutions will decide on their operating mode individually, taking into account the local security situation.

Background:

• On 14 January, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced the introduction of a state of emergency in the energy sector and the establishment of a coordination headquarters in Kyiv.
• The government recommended that all educational institutions, particularly preschools and universities, switch to online learning.
• On 16 January, it became known that people in Ukraine can now go outside during curfew hours without special permits and use transport to access invincibility and heating centres. [Invincibility centres are heated premises stocked with food and power banks to assist residents facing hardships due to power cuts – ed.]
• Energy Minister Denys Shmyhal revealed that the electricity supply situation is currently most challenging in the city of Kyiv and Kyiv, Odesa, Dnipropetrovsk and Kharkiv oblasts as well as in all frontline communities.

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