A Lost Generation In Ukraine Deserve Our Support

As the war drags on for another year, almost one million Ukrainian school-age children are still not able to attend school in person. Many have never set foot in a classroom.

ChildFund is launching an appeal to support Ukrainian children to get the support and the education they need now.

These children rely on the help of New Zealanders and others around the world to make sure they can keep accessing online education or learn abroad as their families seek refuge in places like Moldova.

"This is the generation who will have to rebuild Ukraine. They will be the builders, engineers, teachers, and leaders of the future. It’s not just that they deserve to be safe, to learn, to have a future like any other child. It’s also that they are literally the future of Ukraine," says Josie Pagani, CEO of ChildFund.

Since Russia invaded, more than 4,000 schools and educational institutions in Ukraine have been damaged or destroyed.

Since Covid and then the war, many Ukrainian children have endured four years of interrupted learning. They have fallen behind in reading, maths and science compared to their peers in other countries.

When Ukrainian children turn up in countries like Moldova as refugees, they struggle with the language, and suffer the ongoing impacts of war.

"What these children have endured is unimaginable. The trauma is extreme. It would be easy to feel hopeless and wonder what we can do to help. But we can support these kids right now, and we should," says Josie Pagani.

New Zealanders can donate to organisations like ChildFund supporting Ukranian children directly in places like Moldova where their families have sought refuge.

ChildFund donations will help to:

• Build a safe space for 300 children and young people to socialise and just be children again.
• Provide psychosocial support for the mental health of 1,100 people, including children.
• Deliver recreational and education programmes for 600 children to participate in while they’re unable to access formal education.

"We must not forget the children in Ukraine. Education is the cornerstone of Ukraine’s reconstruction. So let’s support these kids now to keep learning," says Josie Pagani.

Donate here:

https://childfund.org.nz/ukrainian-refugee-response/

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