• We support the most vulnerable Ukrainian refugees who arrived in Georgia: stories
• We started a new entrepreneurship program for women in Ukraine; in total, we support the start of 110 new businesses or support existing ones

Humanitarian aid in Ukraine
 

46-year-old Svetlana arrived in Estonia in March 2022, accompanied by her 7-year-old son and cat Weissi. The journey on the roads was long and dangerous, there was no fuel at the gas stations and no cash in the ATMs, but thanks to the help of good people, they arrived safely: "In the first days of the war, we believed that this horror would end soon and we could return to our old lives, but every day the situation got worse. Constant alarms, lots of military equipment, soldiers, explosions and empty shelves in stores. After spending nights in the cold basement, my son fell ill.

Terve aasta väldanud kohanemisprogramm #minuadaper tõi kokku 561 inimest 60 riigist, kes läbi ühistegevuste ja koolituste aitasid teineteisel eluga Eestis paremini kohaneda.

Estonian Refugee Council has been operating in Georgia since 2021, but until now, our focus have been internal refugees from South-Ossetia. Last year hundreds of thousands of refugees from Ukraine passed through Georgia. Permanently 27 000 (January 2023) have stayed there. On our monitoring visit to Georgia it was confirmed, that many of them are living in very difficult conditions. In many cases, Georgia was their only escape route when war went over East-Ukraine and it would have been too dangerous to move to west.

We provide multi-purpose cash assistance, with which people can buy food, medicine, hygiene supplies and other basic necessities. As of now, we have provided cash-based assistance to approximately 200,000 people worth a total of 31 million euros. The allowance is UAH 2,220 (= about EUR 61) per household member per month. You can get help for a total of three months. A separate call center and application platform has been opened for applying for cash-based support in Ukraine: https://register.pagulasabi.ee/ 

Last Sunday, January 22nd, the Demoday of the “Empowering Women” mentoring program took place in Tallinn. Women who have been forced to leave Ukraine due to the war introduced the progress they have made in starting their microbusinesses in Estonia.

Last Friday, the President of Estonia handed over the Initiative of the Year award for the campaign "Ukraina heaks" which we run together with the NGO Mondo and Ukrainian Culture Centre.

Together we can move the mountains!

Photo: Karl-Kristjan Nigesen

December 16, we opened our office in Kyiv!

From Kyiv, we manage our entire Ukrainian humanitarian aid program, including a cash-based assistance program in nine oblasts, the organization of food aid in three oblasts, an entrepreneurship program aimed at women, and a winter support program. We are close to those in need, cooperation partners, and the Estonian Embassy in Kyiv, located on the same street.

• Read the summary and statistics of the Estonian Refugee Council 2022!

The most active year in the history of the Estonian Refugee Council has come to an end and it is time to look back. What did we do in 2022?