At the end of February, it was very apparent that a humanitarian crisis was to unveil in Ukraine and we knew that we could help and needed to organise quickly. 

In that time the number of fatalities and injured is unknown.  There are figures quoted but no one knows the true number and keeping abreast of this situation is near on impossible.  Hour by hour the situation changes.  What is very evident is the number of Ukrainian people who now have refugee status.  Tens of thousands daily crossing borders.  A reasonably up to date report on the situation of people crossing into Moldova has been compiled by ACAPS.

Many charities along with individuals are also now on the move with trucks of aid.  At Hope and Aid Direct we aim to ensure that all aid that we take to the people of Ukraine is needed.  So often well-intentioned aid, mainly clothes delivered in black plastic bags, are simply not required and will only add to the issues rather than help.  There are currently people on the borders taking clothes back from these locations and moving them to Lebanon or Calais.

At the start of the conflict one of our trustees went immediately out to Poland, Slovakia and Ukraine to understand the situation on the ground.  In addition this trip was to cement partnerships that not only allow us to get aid into the country but also ensure that we know what we need to send.  Off of the back of this trip our first truck arrived Romania on the 12^th March and delivered baby boxes and nappies, which will be taken by local NGO’s into Ukraine.   

We have long term relationships with agencies that work in Slovakia and Moldova.  Our aid agency partners on the ground can provide us with a specific needs list which we can then gather, sort, load our trucks and deliver direct to those who most need help.  This list is regularly changing and is updated to suit the needs at the time.  

Our focus is on both speed and need; how quickly we can be effective and work with our agency contacts.  This crisis is not going to end soon.  We know we will need to support people for many years and that this will be one of the most challenging tasks.

We have given hope and aid for twenty-five years and know what needs to be done and how best to achieve this given the complex border controls and logistics to be covered.  We always need money to fuel the trucks for our volunteer drivers to make the long and sometimes challenging distributions possible. So please DONATE and allow us to continue this work.  Monthly recurring payments are very valuable and where applicable please make sure you check the gift aid box.

For further updates on where and what aid our trucks are delivering please go to the Ukraine Updates

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