UN relief chief: "We want to support Ukrainian people's resilience"

Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Martin Griffiths’ remarks at joint press conference on the launch of the Ukraine Regional Refugee Response Plan and Ukraine Humanitarian Response Plan 2023

Geneva, 15 February 2023

Thank you very much for being here for this very important day for extraordinarily important appeals for Filippo and I on Ukraine and the regional response.

I will speak to the Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP) for Ukraine itself internally and, of course, [UN High Commissioner for Refugees] Filippo [Grandi] will speak for the region.

We are asking today for $3.9 billion for this year for the HRP in Ukraine. Over 11 million people are targeted by this response plan. And, as you probably know, there are nearly 18 million people in need, as usual with these plans, the larger number of those who have not become part of the focused priority of the plan itself.

Eighteen million out of 43 million pre-war population now down, of course, to much less, 36 million still living in Ukraine. So, 18 million – half of those living in Ukraine are in need. And we are targeting over 11.

We have 652 operational partners inside Ukraine, of course we built up these relationships, operational partners being particularly Ukrainian NGOs. And last year's flash appeal for Ukraine, which we launched here, for $3.4 billion was 80 per cent funded.

I would like to draw your attention to one of the aspects of the current humanitarian response in Ukraine under the leadership of Denise Brown, our Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator.

What the team there is prioritizing and doing is sending convoys to the front lines to meet the needs of the people on the front lines, on the Ukrainian side of the front lines, not across the line, but into areas of great danger and difficulty and priority needs.

And I think that's an extraordinary testimony to the resilience and courage of those working in Ukraine. And yesterday, indeed, UN staff in Dnipro traveled in six pre-loaded trucks and headed to the Donetsk region, you know, there, some 200 kilometers away, two villages, in the worst of those war zones. That is a very hot area of war at the moment.

People there are under daily shelling attacks, homes being bombed, freezing cold, electricity problems. And our colleagues drove as close to the front line as they could and have delivered, of course, through local partners. And they delivered medicine heaters, food, blankets, and so forth to 1,200 people.

That’s something that goes on day in and day out in Ukraine as a result of this terrible war. More than 7,000 civilians have been killed in Ukraine, according to our estimates in the last year, almost certainly a low estimate; 12,000 civilians have been injured, again, according to our estimates and no doubt a low estimate, hundreds of children, of course, shockingly, among those numbers.

Relentless attacks, as we have known and you know well, against the energy infrastructure, civilian infrastructure. Access to schools, as we have both seen, Filippo was there much more recently than me, is a devastation of a way of life.

And yet the resilience of the Ukrainian people desperately seeking to return to their homes, to start their jobs, to send their children to schools, is something that we want to support in these appeals.

So, I urge all those generous governments and people and civil society and people like you and me around the world to give generously today, and you can be sure that the funding will go to those who need it in Ukraine.

Thank you.

Swiss news agency: I would like to make the connection with what you just said. So, there are many crises abroad as well, and we know the importance of Ukraine also to respond to the other crises. So, Mr. Griffiths, we are getting closer to the renewal of these agreements, on grain deals and on fertilizers. Where do we stand on that? Are you confident that they are going to be renewed? Thank you.

Mr. Griffiths: The Black Sea Grain Initiative, as you know, Laurent, is up for renewal on the 18th of March, I think it is. I remember saying before the last rollover, that I expressed some confidence that it would take place. I think we are in slightly more difficult territory at the moment, but the fact is, I think this will be conclusive and persuasive. I hope so, that the global south and international food security needs that operation to continue. And now, we are close to 20 million tons having come across the Black Sea. We don't need it stopped in the middle of March. And I hope, and I hope and believe actually, on that it will be we extended. And that is because it is an obvious case for international humanitarian security. Thank you.

Associated Press: I just wanted to try to put this into perspective, going back to the appeal. Two quick questions. One is just about the appeal. Could you put it into perspective in terms of the size of this compared to others? I mean, presumably, there is a superlative in there somewhere. And so, you just said you are in more difficult territory about the Black Sea Grain Initiative. Could you elaborate on that? What do you mean by more difficult territory?

Mr. Griffiths: Yes, on the second question, what we are seeing is the need for export. You know there were two deals signed on the 22nd of July in Istanbul. There is a memorandum of understanding between the UN and the Russian Federation on removing impediments to the export of Russian fertilizers and foodstuffs. And then the Black Sea Grain Initiative, but both obviously operate in tandem. The first one is much more complicated in many ways, as you know, to make it work than the second, and it is important that it does work. It is important that we get Russian fertilizers out, you know, we have the World Food Programme, [Executive Director] David Beasley, has stressed again and again that actually fertilizers getting out the moment is of the highest priority. And it is there is a lot more to be done on that front. And that is where we need to and indeed, under [Secretary-General of the UN Conference on Trade and Development] Rebeca Grynspan's leadership here, a huge amount of work has been done. But in fact, both agreements have their own value and virtue. And I would argue for the humanitarian imperative of each and separately.

Size of this [appeal]: it is a very big one. It is not the biggest, but it is a very big appeal, for good reason, and Filippo will speak to that in a minute. There are others which are slightly bigger as Humanitarian Response Plans, for example, Afghanistan is bigger, for example, Yemen is slightly bigger. I think Syria is also, but this is a major, major operation.

And to be remembered for both of us, it started on the first day. We were not, very carefully not, in the business of planning for what might happen on the 24th of February of last year. Many agencies, UN and others, did not operate in Ukraine, although there was a history of eight years, of course, operating down in the Donbas. And then linking up refugee responses, as Filippo was saying, was something that had to be done to de novo. And I am glad, and I wanted to just add to what Filippo just said, very, very pleased to have the relationship we have now with the Ukrainian Government, which is solid, and which is an amazing achievement, Ukrainian Government to maintain a level of servicing and response to needs in the middle of this extraordinary war. It is quite, it is kind of an unsung story. So we were, you know, huge respect to them.

The Lancet: Mr. Griffiths, in many of your appeals, it is not across the board, how much is funded by component, whether it is shelter, or protection or health. In the case of Ukraine, which segments received the best contribution and which were less? We have seen this in many crises, one segment gets 80 per cent like food, and health might get 30 per cent.

Mr. Griffiths: Yes, sorry, I do not have the figures today, but we can provide them to you. But it is a very good point. I mean, we often talk about this. Protection, which is, God knows, you know the most important human need, under these circumstances in all of these appeals, is almost always the least well-funded. I mean, the example for me, which I remember vividly, was from Northern Ethiopia, where Filippo has just been, a year ago, in the early days of the Tigray conflict, and where there have been terrible crimes against women in particular. And I think our protection sector was funded to 5 per cent. It is not that we undermine the needs of these other sectors, but we would like to see more of that.