Attachments
Situation Overview & Humanitarian Needs
During this reporting period, a major milestone in the continuing advocacy for the Safe School Declaration in Ukraine was reached at the Third International Conference on Safe Schools, hosted by the government of Spain, in Palma, on 27-29 May 2019. During the event, the Ukrainian Education Deputy Minister confirmed that the Government had approved the recommendation to join the Declaration and that the respective request had been sent to the President for endorsement.
However, the number of incidents in the areas along the contact line targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure, including educational facilities continued. The education cluster reported two incidents, one in school #4 in Zolote-5/Mykhailivka, Luhanska non-government controlled area (NGCA), the other at a school in Troitske, Luhansk, government controlled area (GCA). This is 8th time the first school sustains damages since the beginning of 2019, while the Troitske school sustained minor damages due to shelling and shooting in its vicinity. Around 30 children were evacuated and taken to a safe space, and the school remained closed for at least 2 days following the incident.
The WASH Cluster reported 17 WASH incidents bringing the total number of WASH infrastructure related incidents to 45 for 2019. The first lift pumping station of the South Donbass Water Way was shelled no less than nine times, bringing the total number to 27 for this facility alone, without which 1.1 million people would be left without water. Water supply to Luhansk city was also negatively affected twice in May.
Equally worrying are ongoing electricity cuts to water infrastructure in the conflict area, as conflict-affected main water companies cannot pay energy bills, but also as a result of the implementation of a national level, European Union related, energy market reforms. Over 18,000 people experienced water cuts on 23rd May when operations at pumping station boreholes were cut near Konstantinovka, while another 90,000 were cut at the end of May in Bakhmut city and surroundings.