Ukraine Support Section

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Since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, EMN has been closely monitoring the support channels for the country's population and its refugees. 

This page provides information on how to support Ukrainian citizens and on the current EU initiatives. You can reach out to emn@european-microfinance.org if you know of more certified aid channels, as our goal is to give the most visibility possible to support initiatives.

1. Measures Intended for Civilians:

  • Rights of refugees in host countries: on March 3rd, EU Member States decided to activate the Temporary Protection Directive. Under this directive, refugees from Ukraine will be granted a temporary residence permit in the EU for at least one year with the possibility to extend it for an additional two years (so until March 4th, 2025). This temporary residence allows refugees from Ukraine to access the labour market, housing, medical assistance and education for their children and therefore is a significant step towards integration
  • Urgent humanitarian help in-country: the European Commission launched an Emergency package of € 500 million to deal with the humanitarian consequences of the crisis, divided as follows:
    - € 93 million for humanitarian aid programmes to help civilians (€ 85 million for Ukraine and € 8 million for Moldova) to provide food,        water, healthcare, shelter and help cover basic needs.
    - € 330 million for emergency programme to help secure access to basic goods and services and the protection of the population.

2. Measures intended to Ukraine and EU Member States welcoming refugees

  • Cohesion's Action for Refugees in Europe (CARE): 
    Following the proposal from the European Commission, the European Parliament and the Council of the EU have adopted [MV1] the CARE regulation which amends the 2014-2020 legal framework for the European Structural and Investment Funds (including ERDF, ESF and CF) and the Fund for European Aid for the Most Deprived (FEAD).
    This regulation allows more flexibility for Member States to transfer resources between programmes which are financed by the ERDF and the ESF in order to welcome Ukrainian refugees. For instance, ERDF resources could be reallocated to provide healthcare for Ukrainian refugees.
    Moreover, under the REACT-EU programme, Member States will be able to use up to 9.5 billion share of the 2022 budget. The regulation also extended by one accounting year the 100% from the EU budget for cohesion programmes. The objective is here to alleviate the burden on national and regional budgets due to the inflow of refugees from Ukraine.
    In total, these measures should allow to release almost € 17 billion. The new measures eligible for funding under CARE started on February 24th.

  • Emergency Macro-financial assistance: the EU is providing a large-scale support of € 1.2 billion to Ukraine in the form of long-term loans and € 120 million in budget support.

  • 10-PoinPlan: on March 28th, the Home Affairs Council adopted a 10-point Plan for stronger European coordination on welcoming refugees from Ukraine. The plan provides for:

    1. The creation of an EU platform for registration to exchange information on beneficiaries of temporary protection.
    2. The development of a coordinated approach to handle the mean of transportation and the information hubs for refugees.
    3. An inventory of the reception capacity and accommodation in Member States to help organise transfers between Member States
    4. The development of national contingency plans to address medium to long-term needs with the development of an EU Index to follow the evolution of arrivals which will help Member States to assess the pressure of their reception capacity.
    5. The development of standard operating procedures and guidance for the reception and support of children by the European Commission and the European Union Agency for Asylum
    6. The development of a common anti-trafficking plan to prevent trafficking and exploitation.
    7. The reinforcement of solidarity with Moldova: to support its reception capacity which is under a huge strain: Member States and the European Commission, through the Union Civil protection Mechanism have been sending emergency and humanitarian assistance to Moldova. The objective is to ensure the organisation of the refugees transfers with the UNHCR and the International Organisation of Migration (IOM).
    8. The creation of a framework for international cooperation on safe destinations
    9. The development of internal security measures with the European Multidisciplinary Platform Against Criminal Threats (EMPACT) network.
    10. The access to adequate resources and funding through the creation of a one-stop shop to bring the relevant information to Member States: to face the immediate and long-term challenges and needs, host countries will need to be supported financially at the EU level. This one-stop shop, gathering European Commission experts, will provide information regarding the use of European funds.

  • On April 27, the European Banking Authority called on financial institutions to ensure access to financial services for Ukrainian refugees by keeping the administrative requirements to a minimum. The full statement can be found here.

3. How to help refugees:

    Supporting channels for Ukraine citizens inside the country:

    • Mercy Corps: the organisation is working on the ground and gathering donations to provide emergency cash assistance so people can purchase what they need most, along with additional critical support.
    • International Committee of the Red Cross: the ICRC has been delivering medical supplies, food, water and hygiene material in Kyiv, Mariupol, Odessa, Donetsk, Luhansk, and neighbouring regions. They also just deployed a team to help communities clear unexploded ordnance.
    • International Medical Corps: IMC is working in Ukraine and neighbouring countries to provide access to medical and mental health services for the affected communities.
    • United Nations World Food Programme : WFP is providing food assistance to those in Ukraine and surrounding countries.
    • Medecins Sans Frontieres: MSF is scaling up its on the ground assistance to the Ukranian population.

     Supporting channels for Ukrainian refugees:

    • United Nations Refugee Agency: UNHCR is providing help and shelter for Ukrainian citizens forced to flee their country.
    • International Organization for Migration: IOM has dispatched teams in Ukraine and neighbouring countries to respond to the humanitarian needs of Ukrainians refugees, those internally displaced, and stranded third country nationals.
    • Norwegian Refugee Council: NRC is working with national partners in Poland, Moldova, and Romania to provide shelter to Ukrainian refugees. They are also providing direct cash assistance to displaced parents to assist their families.
    • International Rescue Committee: IRC is working with national partners inside Ukraine to provide direct assistance inside the countries, as well as assisting refugees. 
    • Serve the City: Serve the City is gathering financial donations as well as food, medical supplies and clothes. If you are located in Brussels, you can read how to volunteer and support their local Refugee Centre.

    Stand Up for Ukraine: 
    In partnership with Global Citizen, the European Commission and Canada launched a global campaign to raise funding to support people fleeing from Ukraine. On April 9 the European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and the Prime Minister of Canada will co-host an event to raise funding and mobilise more support to cater for the needs for displaced people and refugees.

    Funding:

    Post date

    25 March 2022

    See also

    Posted on 27 December 2017

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