The International Organization for Migration with the support of donors is expanding its cash assistance programmes for the most vulnerable internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Ukraine.
“In July, IOM launched the second round of multipurpose cash transfer support to IDPs in the Kharkiv Oblast thanks to an additional 1 million euro provided by the European Union through its Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection department (ECHO) and 400,000 euro in co-funding from the Government of Norway,” the organization’s office in Ukraine reported.
According to the organization, elderly people, families with three or more children, single parents, and people with the 1st and 2nd groups of disability who are unfit for work, are going to receive unconditional cash assistance of Hr 1,000 per person this summer. The EU, Norway and IOM aim to support a total of 9,500 people with this assistance.
In autumn, another round of cash support will be conducted in these ten regions of Ukraine, targeting beneficiaries who received support in the summer and possible new arrivals. The amount of cash assistance for the second round in autumn will be established at a later point of time and taking into account several factors, including the level of inflation and market fluctuations.
With an additional 1 million euro provided by Germany, IOM will be able to target another 6,500 vulnerable IDPs currently staying in nine oblasts of Ukraine: Vinnytsia, Poltava, Sumy, Odesa, Mykolaiv, Kherson, Cherkasy, Chernihiv and Zhytomyr oblasts.
“We must target our assistance to those most in need, those who cannot support themselves,” said Mamar Merzouk, Head of the ECHO office in Kyiv.
From December 2014 until April 2015, the EU assisted over 23,000 internally displaced persons registered in Kharkiv Oblast with one-time cash transfers through IOM. According to the Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine, close to 180,000 displaced persons were staying in the region as of July.
