The Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine is a government ministry of Ukraine established on 6 June 1991 after reorganization of the Soviet State Committee of the Ukrainian SSR in affairs of youth and sports. As a government ministry, it is member of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine and exists with some breaks since 1991. The Ukrainian ministry enforces realization a state policy of youth and sports, including Olympic, non-Olympic, and mass physical culture. While the national sport in Ukraine is governed by the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine, the ministry provides additional guidance.
It was reestablished again in 2013 by splitting away from the Ministry of Education and Science where it existed as its subdepartment from 2010 to 2013.
The Honcharuk Government (on 29 August 2019) merged the ministry with the Ministry of Culture. But its succeeding Shmyhal Government undid this merge.
The current minister is Matviy Bidnyi.
The ministry of youth and sports was first created in 1991 when two state committees of physical culture and sports and another of youth (minor) affairs were merged.
In 1996 the organ was reorganized when there was created a new ministry in family affairs and youth, while sports agency was degraded to its child agency as a state committee. Until 2005 it was a state committee.
In 2000 the reorganization of the Ministry of Family Affairs and Youth led to its liquidation and both youth and sports agencies were merged again along with the state committee of tourism for less than a year.
In 2004âÂÂ2005 the Ministry of Family Affairs and Youth was revived, and sports agency once again became its child agency as a state committee.
In 2005 the ministry of youth and sports was reestablished again. In 2005âÂÂ2005 there existed the combined Ministry of Family Affairs, Youth and Sports.
In 2010 the Government of Ukraine led by Party of Regions in announced about reorganization of its government hierarchy when the consolidated ministry was merged again with the Ministry of Education and Science for the next three years as part of the 2010 Yanukovych administrative reform, while agency for sports was degraded to the state service of youth and sports. Finally in 2013 the state service again was given the ministerial portfolio.
The agency in charge of tourism was oscillated and renamed in 2001 as the State Tourism Administration and later in 2004 it was transferred to the Ministry of Culture.
In 2019-2020 the Ministry of Youth and Sports was combined with the Ministry of Culture as part of the 2019 Zelensky administrative reform.
Since 2020, the government agency of youth and sports has been split from the Ministry of Culture and its own ministry.
In December 2001 a committee chairman Maria Bulatova in interview to Mirror Weekly explained that since the independence of Ukraine, the provision for the state institution was de facto copy-pasted from similar institution of the Ukrainian SSR and without even considering the fact that its development strategy was forming out of Moscow by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and State Committee of Sport of the Soviet Union.
Ministry of Family Affairs and Youth was established in 1996 by merging two committees of Women Affairs, Motherhood, and Minors and another of Youth (Minors) Affairs with Ministry on Youth Affairs and Sports.