Four years after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, millions of people are paying the price of sustained attacks on civilian infrastructure, facing on of the coldest winters in recent times without home or heating.
As the war continues and poverty deepens, official figures show that 10.8 million people in Ukraine currently require humanitarian assistance, while already more than four million people have lost their homes.
The two national Caritas organisations — Caritas Ukraine and Caritas-Spes Ukraine — are leading the global Caritas confederation’s response, operating nationwide through one of the largest humanitarian networks inside the country. Since 2022, they have supported more than six million people adapt to a daily reality of diminishing livelihoods and deteriorating community stability. Yet, needs continue to outpace resources, with dependence on external support having increased by 15–20 percent over the past year, showing that many across Ukraine are reaching the limits of their resilience.
Europe cannot look away from the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine. While Ukrainians continue to show remarkable resilience, the emergency is far from over. To ensure effective support, the EU must put local organisations at the centre of the response. They are best placed to reach those in need quickly and help communities recover and rebuild for the long term.
Maria Nyman, Secretary General, Caritas Europa
This requires backing political commitments with concrete action. The EU must provide flexible, multi-year funding that allows Ukrainian local and national organisations to lead the humanitarian response while linking aid to recovery and essential social services. Humanitarian efforts should be aligned with recovery, governance and social cohesion investments. Barriers to funding local organisations must be reduced, and civil society must be fully involved in planning, decision-making and accountability, ensuring aid is both effective and rooted in the communities it serves.
Beyond Ukraine’s borders, more than five million Ukrainians remain displaced across Europe, with over four million relying on temporary protection to live, work and access education, healthcare and housing. With the Temporary Protection Directive (TPD) set to expire in March 2027, their future remains uncertain, creating fear and anxiety on whether, when and how to return home.
The EU and its Member States should prepare an adequate and smooth transition out of temporary protection, facilitating access to secure national residence permits and providing long-term solutions that allow refugees to rebuild their lives. Special attention should be given to people in vulnerable situations who cannot access work or study permits, ensuring they receive appropriate residence status to prevent them from falling into irregularity or destitution. At the same time, continued access to healthcare, mental health and psychosocial support, housing, education and social services must be guaranteed, both during the transition and after people receive their new status.
Read the full press release from Caritas Internationalis here.
Read the interviews with Tetiana Stawnychy, President of Caritas Ukraine and with Fr Vyacheslav Grynevych, SAC Executive Director of Caritas Spes Ukraine.
