From the first days of the war, AFEW immediately mobilized all our resources to aid to Ukrainians who suffered. We have aligned with our network in Ukraine and started gathering their requests, we talked to our international partners and donors and found ways to reallocate some of the funding for emergency aid. We have co-signed and co-created several statements for the decision-makers to draw attention to the needs of the most at-risk groups.

We have started a collaboration with Dutch organizations to make sure that our partners in Ukraine receive aid. With the help of our partners in the Netherlands Dokters van de wereld, some money which was gathered by De Samenwerkende Hulporganisaties (SHO), also known as Giro 555, was transferred to our partner in Ukraine – AFEW-Ukraine to get medicines and provide vulnerable communities for HIC: prisoners, PWUD, Sex Workers, LGBTQI.

In the framework of a project “Humanitarian aid to local Civil Society Organizations in Ukraine “SOS-Ukraine”, implemented by the MBF AFEW-Ukraine and International Humanitarian Organization People in Need, with technical support of AFEW International, Ukrainian organizations have got an emergency financial support. With this help they were able to get food, water, medicine and other essential supplies.

AFEW International was involved in collecting information on the required medicines for the SAZ (the collaboration of 29 Dutch regional hospitals). Immediately after the war these hospitals joined forces and started collecting medicines and medical devices to send to Ukraine. At the end of March, the first truckload of medical supplies and baby food was delivered to Lviv. From there, the aid was redistributed according to lists to Ukrainian hospitals/ organisations. AFEW International’s partners in Kharkiv also received the necessary medicines.