Stories of Ukrainian refugee children presented at photo exhibition

Stories of Ukrainian refugee children who found a new home at two placement centers in northern Moldova were put on photos that were exhibited at Artcor creative hub. The works present moments from the life of refugees, which reveal these children’s wishes and hopes. The photographs were taken within the project “Children Telling Stories” that was launched by the National Center for Child Abuse Prevention, IPN reports.

Daniela Sîmboteanu, director of the National Center for Child Abuse Prevention, said that this project is about the feelings and emotions of children who came to the Republic of Moldova due to Russia’s war against Ukraine. “Even if the tragic events made so that the children reached our country, in these photos we saw a lot of gratitude as most of them through these pictures expressed wellbeing and gratefulness,” stated Daniela Sîmboteanu. She noted that the 18 refugees who took part in the project “Children Telling Stories” are only several of the thousands of children who received assistance from the National Center for Child Abuse Prevention.


Simona Ružnić, expert in child protection in emergencies at Terre des Hommes the Netherlands, said that the exhibition represents a combination of photography and storytelling. “We gave digital cameras to the children and proposed that they should take several pictures. Then, we asked them to choose the favorite photos and to tell what they present (story behind the pictures) in their own words. The exhibition was the final stage,” explained Simona Ružnić.

Ukraine’s Ambassador to Moldova Marko Shevchenko noted that the pictures taken by the children show places that look similar to settings in Ukraine, the native country of the refugees. Despite the fact that the authors of the photos expressed their gratitude for the assistance offered by Moldova and they like this country, they want to return home, to Ukraine.


“The Ukrainian children are our children. The Ukrainian army and people fight not only for Ukraine, but also for freedom and democracy in the Republic of Moldova. We must realize this,” said Minister of Labor and Social Protection Alexei Buzu.


The exhibition is designed to promote young talents from placement centers and to encourage them to create.