Each year on 20 June, the world observes World Refugee Day, the international day to honour people who have been forced to flee, and to highlight their vulnerability. The 2023 theme of World Refugee Day is “Hope away from home” and it shines a light on the rights and needs of refugees around the world.
Due to the war in Ukraine, today Eastern Europe and Central Asia (EECA) experience a large-scale crisis. Big numbers of Ukrainian people have been displaced. The UN figures record more than 8 million Ukrainian refugees across Europe, with around 6 million people internally displaced within Ukraine. More than 18 million people have crossed the Ukrainian border since 24 February 2022. Neighbouring countries were also impacted by this war. Many Ukrainians left their homeland without money, documents, and medicine. This caused extreme stress and directly impacted the health situation in many recipient countries.
One of the strategic directions of AFEW International is IMPROVING RESILIENCE of communities and addressing the negative consequences of the crisis in Ukraine and the implications for the entire region. Following this direction, from March 2022, AFEW International has been providing support to Ukrainians in the Netherlands, displaced by the war, with regard to their immediate urgent needs such as access to ART treatment, psychological consultations, and humanitarian aid.
At the end of March 2023, AFEW International launched the Programme of training and mentorship for the Ukrainian refugees living with HIV in Poland to expand the equal and full participation of PLHIV Ukrainian refugees in Polish HIV programmes. The main goal of this project is to strengthen effective, inclusive, and responsive programmes and policies, developed with the full participation of all PLHIV Ukrainian refugees living in Poland.
AFEW will continue working on improving the resilience of communities and addressing the crisis in Ukraine. We urge our partners all over the world to make the EECA region a priority for international governmental institutions and private donors. Together, we can advocate for the refugees’ right to seek safety, we can support, protect and improve their lives in any country.
