VERONIKA AND ANGELICA*

Another DEC member charity provided a three-months’ worth of hygiene kit materials to a healthcare centre as well as to 18 collective centres, and installed handles, ramps and shower chairs to facilitate access for residents with mobility challenges. The same member charity also supported the rehabilitation of damaged public water facilities in Zhytomyr (western Ukraine) and Kyiv oblasts through the provision of water pumps, tanks, sewage cleaning machines, hand and power tools and other equipment necessary to improve water and sanitation services in these communities.

83,700 people received hygiene kits containing toothbrush, toothpaste, soap, shampoo, washing powder and toilet paper or abuse. People affected by crises like this, particularly those forced to flee their homes, often lose the opportunity to earn money. Without an income to meet their needs, people may resort to harmful coping strategies, including the sale or exchange of sex, child labour, family separation or forced marriage. Providing them with cash or voucher assistance enables them to prioritise and fulfil their needs in an independent and dignified manner, reducing their vulnerability to potential harm. People targeted for this assistance included single parents with multiple dependents, unaccompanied children, people with disabilities, survivors of violence, and people considered to have a heightened protection risk such as Roma and LGBTQIA+ people. Identifying vulnerable people in need of ‘cash for protection’ is often a gateway to providing other critical support, such as mental health or psychosocial support, legal assistance to support people to access welfare entitlements, and targeted support around human trafficking and gender-based violence.