- Help Centre for Ukrainian refugees in Poland to receive EBRD support
- Korean donor funds to help increase the organisation’s capacity
- 3,600 Ukrainians to receive career, legal and psychological assistance
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the government of the Republic of Korea have extended funds to the Help Centre for citizens of Ukraine in Warsaw to help it provide counselling services to 3,600 Ukrainian refugees over the next year.
Under the EBRD’s Civil Society Capacity Enhancement Framework, €128,000 of donor funds from the Korean Technical Assistance and Cooperation Fund will support the non-governmental organisation, commonly known as the Help Centre.
The official announcement today in Warsaw was followed by a discussion about the social and economic inclusion of Ukrainians in Poland, co-organised with the Help Centre’s founding body, the Instytut Wolności (the Freedom Institute) think tank.
Olena Koval, EBRD Head of Civil Society Engagement and Private Sector Partnerships, said: “We are proud to support the outstanding work of the Help Centre, which has worked tirelessly since early March last year to support Ukrainians. Today’s grant to the Help Centre allows us to support both civil society and the economic inclusion of displaced Ukrainians. Civil society in Poland and across central Europe has been a driving force in welcoming Ukrainian refugees; we approved a similar project with two Croatian NGOs earlier this year and are looking to expanding the programme to other countries in the region.”
Poland has the highest number of refugees displaced by the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, with about 1.5 million Ukrainian refugees registered for temporary protection in the country.
The Help Centre, which focuses exclusively on the integration needs of refugees from Ukraine, was established on 3 March 2022 by the Freedom Institute. Last year, it provided administrative, legal and employment support services to 2,000 Ukrainian refugees.
The EBRD capacity-building project and the Korean donor funds will allow the Help Centre to increase its pool of experts and provide counselling to at least 3,600 Ukrainian refugees over the next year.
Since the start of its operations in Poland more than 30 years ago, the EBRD has invested more than €12.8 billion in the country, with €1 billion invested last year. In Ukraine, the Bank is on track to deliver on its commitment to invest €3 billion over 2022-23.