When the conflict broke out in 2014, many in Eastern Ukraine thought that it would not last long. Now, the political tensions and fightings are entering its eighth year.

Since then, 1.4 million people have been displaced and over ten thousands of Ukrainians have lost their lives. It is "Europe's largest crisis since the Balkan wars", according to the IOM. 

Following the COVID-19 outbreak, more than ever were Ukrainians in dire need of humanitarian help.

The Ukrainian diaspora has been a silent but strong actor in humanitarian response since several decades. Its actions and continuous work have mostly not been recognized by the humanitarian system. 

In this report, we outline the strengths of 23 Ukrainian diaspora organizations involved in humanitarian response, as well as their challenges with the formal humanitarian system. 

The Ukrainian diaspora counts at some 7 million, although other estimates consider 12-20 million to be more realistic. There are approximately 1,000 Ukrainian diaspora organizations around the world, but not all are involved in humanitarianism. 

Most diaspora organizations focus their humanitarian response on health and rapid assistance such as providing food, cash, and clothes to those in need.

In 2020, over 1 million people have received humanitarian assistance, with focus on the conflict-affected eastern Ukraine, in addition to the COVID-19 response.

The humanitarian response of diaspora organizations can be characterized as small-scale, ad-hoc and punctual. The majority of diaspora organizations support the families and children of killed or wounded soldiers and/or directly support the military and consider this support as humanitarian.

Read more in our report!