Informing humanitarians worldwide 24/7 — a service provided by UN OCHA

Ukraine + 10 more

Ukraine: Summary of the Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan and the Regional Refugee Response Plan (January 2025) [EN/UK]

Attachments

AT A GLANCE
This document is a summary of the humanitarian response for Ukraine and the region that is presented in the Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan (HNRP) and the Regional Refugee Response Plan (RRP) as published on 16 January 2025. To support the most vulnerable Ukrainians affected by the ongoing war inside the country and displaced abroad, partners need the support and investment of the international community.

STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES
HUMANITARIAN NEEDS AND RESPONSE PLAN

  • Provide principled and timely multisectoral life-saving emergency assistance to the most vulnerable internally displaced people and non-displaced war-affected people, ensuring their safety and dignity, with a focus on areas with high severity levels of need.
  • Enable access to prioritized essential services for the most vulnerable internally displaced and non-displaced war-affected people, with a focus on areas with high severity levels of need to ensure their protection, safety and dignity.

REFUGEE RESPONSE PLAN

  • Support host countries to ensure that refugees have continued access to protection, legal status, and rights, with a focus on groups in vulnerable situations and including age, gender and diversity considerations.
  • Support host countries in their efforts to include refugees in national systems – decent work, social protection, health, education, and child protection services – with a particular focus on outreach and inclusion of vulnerable groups and including age, gender and disability considerations.
  • Strengthen social cohesion between refugee communities and their hosts.
  • Advance the localization of the response by supporting national and local civil society, municipalities and local authorities, and coordination structures, as well as sharing and building capacities and supporting sustainable responses.

SITUATION OVERVIEW

After more than a decade of hostilities and nearly three years of full-scale war by the Russian Federation, the people of Ukraine continue to endure immense suffering. Relentless attacks on cities, towns, and villages in eastern, southern, and northeastern regions fuel the severe humanitarian crisis. The length of the frontline expanded since August 2023, with intensified violence in Kharkivska, Sumska, and Chernihivska oblasts. Mass evacuations have displaced thousands, such as in Pokrovsk, Donetsk Oblast, where the population plummeted from 50,000 to 11,500.

Since February 2022, 6.8 million Ukrainian refugees have been recorded, 92 per cent in Europe. Within Ukraine, 3.6 million people remain internally displaced, with 79,000 of the most vulnerable in collective shelters. About 83 per cent of internally displaced people (IDPs) have been displaced for over a year, with limited prospects for return. An estimated 12.7 million people who stayed in their homes face severe hardships due to infrastructure destruction and lack of services, especially in front-line regions and areas near the Russian Federation. In Russian-occupied territories, anecdotal evidence suggests devastating humanitarian conditions for one million people.

The war is a protection crisis. By October 2024, verified civilian casualties reached nearly 39,000, including over 12,000 deaths. More than 2,400 children were killed or injured. More than half of the casualties occurred over 10 kilometers from the front line, with true numbers likely underreported due to access challenges. Landmines and explosive ordnance pose ongoing risks, preventing displaced families from returning. Vulnerable groups, such as older people and individuals with disabilities, face isolation and limited access to services. War-related sexual violence is increasing, affecting women, men, and children.
Mental health challenges are widespread, with 63 per cent of households reporting distress linked to constant uncertainty and trauma. Children are especially vulnerable, with 1.5 million at risk of post-traumatic stress syndrome and other issues. Internally displaced people report mental health challenges more frequently than others. Needs are particularly acute in front-line areas and regions bordering the Russian Federation.

Infrastructure destruction has been catastrophic, targeting power grids, water supplies, and transport systems, disrupting basic services and deepening vulnerabilities. Energy infrastructure attacks reduced power capacity, jeopardizing water, gas, and heating during harsh winters, where temperatures can drop to -20°C. Nearly 3,600 educational institutions, including some 2,000 schools, have suffered damage since the escalation of the war, with some 371 educational facilities totally destroyed. Many children in front-line areas face challenges with e-learning due to unstable electricity and internet, threatening a generation’s education.

The economic impact is staggering. As of December 2023, war-related destruction costs reached $152 billion, with housing ($56 billion) and transport ($34 billion) sectors hardest hit. Over 2 million housing units were damaged, primarily in Donetska, Kharkivska, and Zaporizka oblasts. Economic losses exceeded $499 billion due to disrupted activities and widespread unemployment. Poverty levels have risen by 1.8 million, with over 9 million people now living in poverty. Livelihoods remain the most pressing need, especially in front-line areas.

Ukraine’s economy in 2024 remains heavily impacted by the war. Agricultural and industrial hubs in the east have been devastated, rendering much of the country’s infrastructure inoperable. Urban economies have collapsed, with many businesses closed or scaled back. The breach of the Kakhovka Dam in June 2023 further exacerbated agricultural losses and food insecurity. Economic recovery is projected to slow to 3.2 per cent in 2024, down from 4.8 per cent in 2023.

The war has also triggered the fastest and largest displacement crisis in Europe since World War II. Some 6.8 million people have been forced to flee abroad, and as of the end of 2024, some 6.3 million refugees have been recorded in Europe.

The extension of the application of the Temporary Protection Directive (TPD) in the European Union until at least March 2026 provides a crucial framework for the continued protection of Ukrainian refugees. Similarly, Moldova’s Temporary Protection regime has been extended until March 2025, with the possibility of further extensions. While TP provides a favourable environment for refugees to receive protection, and access their rights and assistance in host countries, there is uncertainty around what comes next. It is essential to ensure that refugees from Ukraine have continued access to legal certainty and protection also beyond these deadlines until they are able to voluntarily return in conditions of safety and dignity.
Whilst refugees have returned to Ukraine, UNHCR intentions monitoring shows that the ongoing war remains the main barrier to large-scale returns. Providing objective and updated information about the situation in Ukraine remains critical for refugees to make informed decisions about return. The Ukraine is Home platform is key to supporting this process. Refugees should feel assured they can visit Ukraine briefly to maintain family, property, and cultural ties, which is shown to influence longer-term return decisions. Special support is needed for vulnerable refugees to avoid premature returns. If conditions improve, partners are prepared to adapt and assist larger-scale returns.

Inter-agency assessments across the region, including the Socio-Economic Insights Survey, highlight a number of risks faced by refugees from Ukraine, with vulnerabilities increasing over time. Intersectional factors such as disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, and socio-economic status exacerbate the levels of exposure to these risks.

Family separation remains a key issue. Women and children make up the majority of the refugee population, with 63 per cent being women and girls and 33 per cent being children. This demographic profile raises specific protection risks, particularly around gender-based violence, human trafficking, and different forms of exploitation, including sexual exploitation and abuse.

Gender-Based Violence (GBV) remains one of the most pervasive and structurally embedded human rights violations and continues to disproportionately affect refugee populations. While efforts to combat GBV have grown, significant challenges persist, especially linked to intimate partner violence. A lack of comprehensive data and chronic underreporting remain critical barriers to understanding the full scope of the issue. Survivors often face stigma, fear retaliation, or worry about the impact on their legal stay, deterring them from reporting incidents. Moreover, cultural and linguistic barriers prevent many survivors from seeking help, while legal systems in some countries are ill-equipped to handle cases of GBV.
Sustainable inclusion of refugee children, particularly those without parental care, continues to remain in focus of child protection partners in RRP countries. Such inclusion should guarantee nationally owned child protection case management procedures, underpinned by the principle of the best interests of the child, that should inform all the decisions taken in relation to those refugee children, with the possible involvement of relevant Ukrainian child protection institutions.

Across the region, households with specific needs, such as those with members with disabilities or serious medical conditions, disproportionately struggle to access key rights in host countries. These households face persistent challenges in accessing healthcare, social protection and employment, which lead to deeper social and economic marginalization. People with disabilities often face ‘double barriers’ in accessing services, not speaking a local language being an additional barrier to the disability itself, preventing them from accessing services or have to travel back to Ukraine for the lack of access to services.

The lack of necessary documentation also continues to be a critical issue, with 17 per cent of households missing essential papers, thereby hindering access to rights and services. This has contributed to temporary returns to Ukraine, where refugees attempt to retrieve documents, though some face significant challenges upon re-entering host countries, including the loss of legal status or social benefits.
In education, the situation remains precarious. At the end of the 2023-2024 school year, significant numbers of school-aged children were not enrolled in formal education, while two-thirds of younger children were not accessing early childhood education. Progress has been made in some countries, but low levels of inclusion in national education systems in host countries present significant risks for long-term education, social and developmental outcomes.

In the area of socio-economic inclusion, only between 40 and 60 per cent of refugees are employed, meaning that a substantial proportion are currently unemployed or excluded from the labour force. In addition, when they are employed, refugees are often in informal or low-wage work, exposing them to exploitation. Significant support is needed to ensure sustainable employment and economic self-reliance, including enhanced access to language and vocational training and streamlined pathways to skills and qualifications recognition.

Despite efforts from the host countries to provide access to health services for refugees in line with the TPD, healthcare access remains a challenge. Seventeen per cent of refugees report significant barriers to accessing healthcare, which particularly affects people with chronic illnesses and disabilities. Mental health and psychosocial support needs are particularly acute, with 36 per cent of households reporting at least one member experiencing mental health or psychosocial problems affecting their daily functioning.

Disclaimer

UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
To learn more about OCHA's activities, please visit https://www.unocha.org/.