In the municipality of Chisinau, almost 80% of the Ukrainian refugee children whose needs were assessed had access to the services of community centers for children and young people, day camps, youth centers and rehabilitation services. There were identified 242 children in situations of risk. The children exposed to risks were those who weren’t accompanied by authorized persons and those in an imminent danger. The needs of 2,827 Ukrainian refugee children were assessed as part of the campaign “Help me to help you!” that was conducted by the Chisinau City Hall and the General Division for the Protection of Children’s Rights, IPN reports.
According to deputy mayor Angela Kutasevich, the community of refugees was informed about all the services provided by the municipality of Chisinau. “We offered support and protection to children in situations of risk so as to prevent any form of abuse, violence, negligence, monitoring each case apart. In the 2022-2023 school year, over 800 children were admitted to schools and kindergartens and 530 of these were admitted to schools of the municipality, while 300 refugee children attend kindergartens in Chisinau City. The informal municipal institutions also offer a wide range of educational services, such as the Municipal Youth Center, libraries, extracurricular activity centers, art schools, community centers for children and young people that daily welcome over 1,800 refugee children and young people,” stated the official.
The assessment was conducted between May 30 and August 30. Anna Bezobrazova, of the General Division for the Protection of Children’s Rights, said that among the key needs of refugee children are the food (77%), clothing and footwear (39%), hygiene articles (20%). Two in five children were enrolled in a form of education for the period of their stay in Chisinau. 954 children of the 1,005 children enrolled in a form of education were engaged in formal education.
Andrew Painter, of UNHCR Moldova, said that most of the refugees are concentrated in Chisinau and the municipality offered accommodation to those who needed, very important services. The campaign “Help me to help you!” pursued the goal of informing and communicating. “We must know where the refugees were housed so as to help them, to realize their needs and to explain the available services. Even if a refugee lives in a community, this does not mean that the person mandatorily knows the available options,” he stated.
Since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, over 23,600 refugees have been accommodated at municipal placement centers. Daily, hundreds of refugees receive assistance in the form of food and hygiene parcels at the placement center Patria Lukoil. Over 50,000 parcels with food assistance have been distributed to refugees so far.
