Attachments
CONTEXT AND OVERVIEW
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This is the second winter since the Russian Federation’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Some 5 million people remain forcibly displaced in Ukraine and millions more who have remained in or returned to war-affected areas need humanitarian assistance and support during the winter months.
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Winters in Ukraine are harsh and early interventions are essential to ensure warm, safe, and dignified living conditions for affected people. Homes have been damaged and destroyed by missile, rocket, and artillery attacks. Not all of the damage caused to the energy and heating infrastructure last winter has been repaired and there is a high risk that energy infrastructure will be attacked again this winter. Conditions in many collective sites will be even more precarious in winter temperatures. As the war continues and livelihood opportunities have been lost, people’s resources have been depleted.
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The winterization response is UNHCR’s priority over the coming six months. In coordination with the government of Ukraine and contributing to the broader Ukraine Winter Response Plan UNHCR’s winterization response will target 900,000 vulnerable, displaced and war-affected people between 1 September 2023 and 29 February 2024.
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Findings from a monitoring assessment of UNHCR’s winter programme last year indicate that cash assistance is the preferred modality for receiving assistance. Cash assistance allows people to determine their own priorities and to address pressing needs more effectively, including increased costs associated with winter.