BACKGROUND
The conflict in Ukraine has greatly affected ordinary people, destroying infrastructure and forcing millions to flee their homes seeking safety. The result is the largest displacement of people in Europe since World War II. The global crisis response strategy brings together the United Nations, nongovernmental organizations like IOCC, and local partners. Combined efforts are helping ensure safety for refugees fleeing Ukraine and are providing humanitarian assistance in-country and across the region. Women and children, persons with disabilities or serious medical conditions, older persons, and minority groups are increasingly facing barriers in accessing critical services such as transportation, food products, medicines, and emergency healthcare in impacted areas.
KEY PRIORITIES
IOCC has identified the following key areas of programmatic response:
• Humanitarian support for people in Ukraine.
• Support for families and institutions hosting refugees from Ukraine.
• Leveraging IOCC’s expertise in providing emotional care and counseling in crisis situations, plus other psychosocial support, including protection for women and children.
IOCC RESPONSE
In Ukraine, IOCC is working with local partners to provide:
• Fuel for heating.
• Bath and bedding essentials including towels, blankets, sheets, and warm clothing.
• Baby food, food parcels, and personal hygiene items for women and families seeking refuge in shelters.
• Distributions of food, water, medicine, hygiene items, and essential bedding supplies to displaced persons.
In Romania, working with a long-time Church partner, IOCC is serving refugees and host communities at two border-crossing areas:
• Transporting refugees to safe accommodation.
• Delivering supplies to shelters: Regular distributions of food, hygiene items, and more to 5,000 people
in shelters in western Ukraine.
• Host family support: Monthly groceries and essential supplies for 3,200 families who are hosting refugees (toiletries, baby care, and household cleaning items).
• Humanitarian protection and safeguarding training: IOCC is offering critical training and certification for all volunteers transporting refugees, helping keep particularly vulnerable women and children safe from harm and human trafficking.
• Through our Romania partner, IOCC also worked with a Church partner in Moldova to provide food,
hygiene items, household cleaning supplies, heaters, and other essentials to Ukrainian refugees there.
In Poland, in coordination with Polish authorities and a local Church partner, IOCC is assisting refugees through:
• Supplies for shelters: Serving refugees in accommodation shelters in various cities with food, hygiene, and other humanitarian items.
• Educational assistance: IOCC purchased laptops to establish 26 online learning rooms in accommodation centers for school-age students so they can continue their education remotely.
• Host family support: Many families in Poland have provided accommodation for Ukrainian refugees at their own expense. IOCC is distributing household-support packages for 200 host families including food, toiletries, baby care products, and household cleaning items.
