Ukrainians spend Hr 1,000 vaccination bounty on cinemas, books, theaters

Ukrainians who got Hr 1,000 from the government for getting their coronavirus shots are mainly spending it on cinema, books and theaters, according to new stats from the Ministry of Culture.

The government began paying its promised cash rewards on Dec. 19 through the Diia mobile app. The bounty, meant to incentivize more people to complete their Covid-19 vaccinations, can be used to pay for movies, museums, concerts, fitness and domestic travel.

"The top three places where this money was spent are within the cultural and creative industries," Minister of Culture and Information Policy Oleksandr Tkachenko said on Telegram. "Movie theaters were in the first place, bookstores were slightly behind them in second place and theatrical production agencies were third."

People also spent their bounties on music, shows and tourism.

Tkachenko expressed the hope that these payments would help cultural and creative industries to overcome challenges of Covid-19 pandemic.

President Volodymyr Zelensky first announced the creation of the incentive in mid-November. The Verkhovna Rada allocated Hr 8 billion to the program.

The state budget for 2022 also allocates Hr 9.2 billion to finance and support cultural institutions.

Currently, 34% of Ukrainians and 41% of Ukrainian adults received both doses of vaccine.