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Emergencies

UKRAINE EMERGENCY

4 million

There are nearly 4 million internally displaced people in Ukraine (as of November 2024).

6.8 million

6.8 million refugees from Ukraine have been recorded globally (as of November 2024).

14.6 million

Approximately 14.6 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance in 2024.

About the War in Ukraine

The full-scale war in Ukraine began on February 24, 2022 following the Russian Federation’s invasion of the country. As a result of heavy shelling and fighting, nearly 4 million people have been driven from their homes and are internally displaced and 6.8 million people have crossed into neighboring countries in the region including Poland, Hungary, Moldova or other countries globally. Poland has welcomed the greatest number of Ukrainian refugees, hosting nearly 60 percent of all refugees from Ukraine.

Missile and rocket attacks have caused widespread death, destruction of homes and businesses and severely damaged energy infrastructures across Ukraine. There has been an overall loss of 65 percent of energy generation capacity in the country. The energy crisis is disrupting public access to water, electricity, heating, healthcare, education and social protection. Many Ukrainians are living in damaged homes or in buildings ill-prepared for life-threatening freezing temperatures. As the war continues, humanitarian needs are multiplying and spreading. An estimated 14.6 million people in Ukraine will need humanitarian assistance in 2024. 

Particularly vulnerable groups include older people and people with disabilities who may be unable to flee from high-risk areas. Women and children, who make up approximately 90 percent of people fleeing the crisis, are at risk of gender-based violence and sexual exploitation and abuse. UNHCR is on the ground in Ukraine and across Europe ensuring basic and urgent needs are met. UNHCR and UNICEF have partnered together to establish 39 Blue Dots across eight different countries—one-stop safe spaces equipped to provide information, counseling, mental health and psychosocial support, legal aid and protection services for refugees. 

The war in Ukraine has caused ripple effects across the world—disrupting global supply chains and increasing the price of food, fuel and other commodities. Displaced people living in already vulnerable situations are at risk of gender-based violence and other forms of abuse. The UN Refugee Agency saw a $700 million funding gap in the first year of the war in Ukraine, putting great strain on operations in Uganda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan, Iraq, Ethiopia and other countries in dire need of support. 

“Donors – governments, business, and private individuals – have been incredibly generous over the past year,” the UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said concluding a six day visit to Ukraine in January 2023. “This must be sustained if we are to provide people with the support they urgently need today and for the coming year. I hope all our donors will continue to enable the response to these humanitarian needs.”

VIDEO

What's Happening in Ukraine | USA for UNHCR

How to Help

The UNHCR needs help providing humanitarian aid to those from Ukraine. Winter assistance is essential in keeping displaced people healthy and safe during the winter months.

More Facts About the War in Ukraine

How long has UNHCR been working with Ukraine?

UNHCR has been working in Ukraine since 1994, alongside local authorities, partners and community organizations to deliver protection and humanitarian assistance to people in need and remains on the ground to help now. UNHCR has stockpiles of aid, cash and other means to help people forced to flee and provided that humanitarian access and safety is granted, UNHCR staff are ready to deliver. 

What is UNHCR doing to help?

UNHCR is expanding operations further east and south to hard-to-reach areas, delivering cash and in-kind assistance to Ukrainians, giving emergency shelter repair kits to those with damaged homes, carrying out housing repairs, and providing legal support and psychological counseling. 

What does the future look like?

While the full impact of the war is not yet clear, people continue to flee and there remains large-scale displacement in and out of the country. UNHCR has reinforced its operations in Ukraine and in neighboring countries, sending more resources, staff and stockpiles. UNHCR is working with national authorities to identify and support people forced to flee within Ukraine and scaling up response in neighboring countries currently receiving refugees.

How many people have been displaced?

One third of Ukraine’s total population has been forcibly displaced by the war and forced to flee to safer areas within Ukraine or across borders to neighboring countries.

How many people has UNHCR helped?

In the first year of the war, UNHCR provided 4.32 million people inside Ukraine with humanitarian assistance. In 2023, UNHCR and partners reached more than 2.6 million people in Ukraine and neighboring host countries.

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