Refugee Crisis in Poland: More than 5,8 Million Ukrainians Crossed the Border. How Can We Help?
The war in Ukraine has led to the largest refugee crisis in Europe since the Second World War. More than 11,1 million people have fled Ukraine, moving to the countries closest to its western border, since the war started on 24 February. As one of the neighbouring countries, Poland has received by far the largest number of refugees.
Since February 24, 2022 more than 5,8 million refugees from Ukraine have crossed the Polish border, with the largest number on March 6 — more than 142 thousand people. Nearly 90% of them are women and children. Over the past six months, millions of Ukrainian refugees have been forced to return home or leave Poland for other European countries, especially Germany. But even with the most conservative estimates, about 2 million Ukrainians still remain in the country.
The Polish government tried to make it as easy as possible for refugees to cross the border. According to the government’s decision, all citizens of Ukraine can cross the border, even those who do not have any identity document. This also applies to people whose papers are invalid or incomplete. In this care, to enter Poland, the consent of the Commander of the Border Guard is sufficient, which is given during the border crossing. Polish border services have also set up reception points at border crossings. Those Ukrainians who do not have a guaranteed place to stay in Poland can seek help there. At these points, refugees are provided with temporary accommodation in Poland, a hot meal, a drink, basic medical care, and a place to rest. More information for refugees from Ukraine can be found here.
This large number of refugees to Poland over last time has been extremely challenging, and the support the Polish society has been able to give the people fleeing the war, has impressed the world.
Prior to the war in Ukraine, more than 50 Polish civil society organisations were specialised to work with refugees and migrants. Some of these organisations have international roots. For the last 15 years Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, through the EEA and Norway Grants, have been funding many organisations helping refugees in Poland.
After Putin’s military aggression against Ukraine began, all of these organizations became actively involved in helping Ukrainians.
But now that the Russian invasion has lasted more than six months, aid workers and local civil society activists are warning that the relatively well-managed reception so far could soon start running into problems as volunteers who have been providing critical support simply “burn out”.
NGO workers and local civil society activists in Poland are concerned that the needs of people escaping war — including financial assistance, psychological support, medical care, and more — go beyond what the Polish welfare system is designed to address. They also say that not enough has been done to increase the capacity of the Polish housing market, education system, and other essential services to accommodate millions of refugees.
Autumn is approaching, followed, as usual, by winter. Many analysts are already pointing out that this winter will be one of the most difficult for Europeans in decades because of critically high prices for gas, heating and electricity. Experts warn that at the end of 2022 we can expect a new wave of refugees from Ukraine. With the onset of a cold winter, the destroyed infrastructure of Ukrainian territories affected by the war will not allow civilians to survive. Thousands of people will be forced to leave their cold and ruined homes. Europe expects up to 2 million new refugees this winter. And we must prepare for this new wave of refugees today.
What can we do to help these people? How can we give them back hope and normal living conditions? There are many nongovernmental organizations in Poland that help refugees. Many of them accept donations. In this article, you will find a list of just a few of the best known organizations that have been supporting refugees from Ukraine over the past six months. It is up to you to decide which one to support. Share this information with your friends, so you can do your part to help people fleeing the war.
Polskie Centrum Pomocy Międzynarodowej (Polish Center For International Aid)
Humanitarian, development and medical relief assistance, support for Ukrainian refugees.
Donations: https://pcpm.org.pl/ukraina
Polska Akcja Humanitarna (Polish Humanitarian Action)
Humanitarian aid, help for Ukrainian refugees.
Donations: https://www.pah.org.pl/en/
Caritas Polska (Caritas Poland)
Humanitarian aid, support for Ukrainian refugees. Help for mothers and children from Ukraine.
Donations: https://caritas.pl/ukraina/
Polski Czerwony Krzyż (Polish Red Cross)
Humanitarian aid, support for Ukrainian refugees.
Donations: https://pck.pl/na-pomoc-ukrainie/
UNICEF Polska (UNICEF Poland)
Humanitarian aid, help for children from Ukraine.
Donations: https://unicef.pl/chce-pomoc/nasze-akcje/pomoc-dla-ukrainy
Fundacja Pomagam.pl (Pomagam.pl Foundation)
Evacuation of refugees, humanitarian aid, help for women and children from Ukraine.
Donations: https://zrzutka.pl/6phj34
Fundacja Świętego Mikołaja (St Nicholas Foundation)
Humanitarian aid, help for children from Ukraine.
Donations: https://mikolaj.org.pl/zbiorki/ukraina/
Fundacja im. Sławy i Izka Wołosiańskich (Sława and Izek Wołosiański Foundation)
Foundation takes care of the refugees staying in Poland by offering them accommodation, food, medical care and psychological support. Transportation of sick and injured people to Poland. Help for children from Ukraine.
Donations: https://www.humanosh.org/SOS-UKRAINA-eng
Thank you for reading. All money earned by this article on Medium will be donated to UNICEF Poland to help children from Ukraine.