Irina came from Ukraine with her sons Sadar (4) and Nadar (13). She tries to find work and receives advice from Oxfam staff at Ukrainian House, a shelter in Poland. “I cannot be away from my kids for long hours every day, they need me even more since they have been terrified by all the violence in our home town” Irina says. “They still are very scared and have nightmares”. Photo: Tineke Dhaese/Oxfam
After eight years of armed conflict in the east of the country, the Russian Federation started a military offensive in Ukraine on 24 February 2022. The impact of this war has been devastating. It has so far caused more than 21,000 civilian casualties and the destruction of key infrastructure, such as hospitals, schools, homes, and water installations.
The conflict has displaced about 14 million people from their homes to seek safety within or outside the country, mostly to Poland, Romania and Moldova. Of those fleeing, 90% have been women, children and elderly people. While some refugees stay in neighbouring countries, many have passed through and travelled on to other destinations in Europe. Some have also returned to Ukraine. It is estimated that more than 6 million people are currently displaced within the country.
Our concerns for the most vulnerable
As a humanitarian organisation, Oxfam is gravely concerned about the impacts of the crisis on those most at risk – among both those who have fled the country and those who remain in Ukraine.
Many people who leave their homes are traumatized by war, separation, and travel. They can face difficulties in registering in other countries or areas, challenges accessing legal advice, language barriers, and pushbacks. Without the protections of their usual homes, sources of income, family and community, they are at greater risk of trafficking, extortion, and gender-based violence.
We are also concerned about the unequal treatment and lack of adequate protection of refugees from certain minority groups like the Roma, LGBTQI+ communities, people from third countries outside the EU, young women and children travelling alone, and survivors of gender-based violence.
“What the war has meant to us”
A year on, how Ukraine’s humanitarian response was built on people’s solidarity
In Ukraine Oxfam is partnering with ten local civil society organizations to deliver life-saving assistance and protection to the poorest and most vulnerable people affected by the war. Oxfam heard the stories of some of those who have been at the forefront of the response to this conflict since it started.
Oxfam’s humanitarian response: partnering with local civil society organizations
Oxfam is responding to this humanitarian crisis by primarily working with local civil society organizations who are already supporting displaced people and the communities that host them. Both in Ukraine and in neighbouring countries we have provided funding and technical assistance to 29 organizations.
Our partners have been able to expand their operations to deliver emergency life-saving assistance and protection across different areas: water and sanitation, shelter, food, cash distribution, legal assistance, information and counselling (particularly on the risks of human trafficking and gender-based violence), and mental health and psychological support, as well as a variety of integration services (such as language classes or job search support).
So far, we have helped more than 800,000 people with vital humanitarian assistance across the four countries.
As the war continues, a more structured response is needed
People’s suffering has triggered immense support particularly from volunteers, community groups and local NGOs, all of whom have made massive contributions to the humanitarian response in Ukraine and neighbouring countries.
These organizations have had to quickly expand their work and capacities to keep up with the large numbers of people displaced in and from Ukraine in the past year. They need to contend with burnout and potentially dwindling volunteer support, while savings of Ukrainian families – who have seen their houses and livelihoods destroyed - are drying up.
As the conflict wears on, affected communities and the local organizations that help them will need to be supported in a more structured way by governments of refugee receiving countries and the international aid community to respond to the prolonged crisis and to protect the most vulnerable groups in the longer term.