Alliance of Ukrainian CSOs, Platform of Humanitarian NGOs raise about EUR 5.4 billion for humanitarian aid in Ukraine
The Alliance of Ukrainian Civil Society Organizations and the Humanitarian NGO Platform have raised about EUR5.4 billion for the humanitarian response in Ukraine since the start of the full-scale invasion, Alliance Director Mila Leonova has said.
"Especially for the Ukraine Recovery Conference, the Alliance and the NGO Platform analyzed the impact of the non-profit sector on addressing the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine, and according to 112 members of our communities, EUR 5.4 billion has been raised for the humanitarian response since 2022. This is 69 million times assistance has been provided to people in completely different directions, to save and stabilize their lives," she said at the round table "Humanitarian Activities in War: Protection of Personnel, Innovations and Impact on World Politics" held at the Interfax-Ukraine agency.
The largest amount of assistance, she said, is directed to frontline regions, but support is also provided in other affected communities. The funds raised are used not only for operational response, but also to ensure the capacity of teams working directly on the ground.
At the same time, Oleksandra Buhlak, Deputy Director of the Humanitarian Platform of NGOs in Ukraine, noted that one of the main problems for humanitarian organizations today remains the reduction of funding, which forces us to reconsider approaches to resource allocation.
"As a representative of a large community of humanitarian organizations, I want to note that one of the biggest challenges at the moment is the reduction of funding. This has forced us to reconsider priorities and focus resources on certain regions," the representative of the humanitarian organization said.
She spoke about the Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan, which is publicly available.
"It clearly defines how we determine priorities. Ukraine remains the country with the largest number of people in need of humanitarian assistance. Accordingly, this is where the bulk of support is directed," Buglak noted.
Leonova also emphasized the need to focus not only on institutional donors, but also to look for internal reserves within the country.
"We now have to think not only about institutional donors, but we have to think about how we can mobilize internal resources inside Ukraine, how we can work with our partners, such as the private sector, how to strengthen trust between us. And in the same way - work with the state," she said.
Leonova emphasized that the humanitarian response is essentially temporary, so the issue of sustainability remains key.
"It is very important to think about sustainability here and that we will not always have support, and perhaps we need to do something from the inside as well," the Alliance director emphasized.
