Three years into war, local humanitarian organizations are helping people start over.
February 24 marked three years since Russia launched a full-scale war in Ukraine. Systemic attacks on critical infrastructure, including energy facilities, have left millions without reliable power, heating, or water. On top of missile and drone threats, the people of Ukraine are facing displacement, family separation, and challenges accessing essential services.
Oxfam has been providing humanitarian assistance since the very outset of the crisis. When Russia began its escalation in 2022, Oxfam identified local humanitarian organizations in Ukraine and surrounding countries we could partner with to deliver lifesaving aid.
By the end of last year, Oxfam had partnered with 43 organizations to reach nearly 2.5 million people. Over time, our work in the region has evolved as we have seen how people’s needs have changed. Oxfam has adapted its response to a partner-centered strategy with two tracks: strengthening the long-term sustainability of our partners while also helping them prepare to respond to humanitarian needs as they arise.
Despite everything they have endured, communities across Ukraine haven’t given up hope. Read on to learn about how two of our partners in Ukraine are helping people rebuild their lives.
Envisioning an accessible future
Anastasia* is a wheelchair user who lives and operates a nongovernmental organization serving people with disabilities in Mykolaiv. Before the war, she was employed at a plant that repaired ships, but like at least half the population of the city, she had to flee when the conflict started. She lost her job but returned with a mission: to make transportation accessible for people with disabilities.
Recently, she was inspired to launch a taxi service for wheelchair users called Invataxi. What sets Invataxi apart from other taxi companies is the way it considers not just the physical, but social and emotional needs of people with disabilities. Standard taxis aren’t accessible and drivers may not know how to accommodate people. Mykolaiv does have a social transportation service with two wheelchair-equipped vehicles in its fleet, but there are restrictions on how and when it can be used. For instance, it will take people to the hospital or to handle administrative issues, but not to see friends or go to the store.
“Life is not just about going to the hospital or solving administrative issues,” said Anastasia. “At first, I wanted to launch [this service] through existing taxi businesses, but no one agreed. They just said it was not profitable, and they were not interested. We are people, just like everyone else.”
Anastasia and her business partner Ivan* applied for a grant from Shchedryk Charitable Foundation, through an Oxfam and U.K Disasters Emergency Committee livelihoods project. Founded in 2022, the organization began its work supplying food. Through the partnership with Oxfam, Shchedryk has been able to meet to grow to meet the needs of the returning population.
“Oxfam is the first organization that helped us grow,” said Vitaly Kuznetsov, Shchedryk’s executive director. “We grew up with them, they saw us, and now we have very big prospects.”
More than 400 applications were submitted for the grant program, and Invataxi was one of 38 applicants chosen to receive funding. So far, the money has gone toward outfitting taxis with wheelchair lifts. They plan to also purchase stretchers so bedridden patients or patients who cannot sit for long can use their taxis.
“Shchedryk has allowed us to make this project a reality,” said Anastasia. “It would have been very difficult for me to raise the money to purchase all the equipment myself.”
The goal is to run Invataxi as a social enterprise, training and employing workers with disabilities to be drivers and dispatchers, including people who are returning from war.
Providing for pets and family
In 2024, Olga Cherkas was laid off from her corporate job. At the time, she was pregnant, and her husband was away fighting the war. This was not her first time starting over—in 2014, she had fled Crimea when Russian forces moved in and relocated to Kyiv. Then in 2022, she was forced to temporarily relocate when forces occupied a neighboring village.
“I returned because of my husband,” said Cherkas. “Staying in Ukraine is a matter of principle for me.”
Cherkas, who has a number of rescue animals, decided to focus her energy on pet care. Using a small dehydrator, she began to experiment with recipes for dog treats. “After packaging our first batch, we decided to upgrade to a larger dehydrator,” she said. “By the end of summer, it became clear that we needed even more capacity.”
Help arrived in the form of a grant opportunity offered by the Women’s Consortium of Ukraine (WCU), one of Oxfam’s strategic partners in the region. WCU has supported women in regaining economic stability, offering training and resources to help them re-enter the workforce or start businesses. Cherkas is one of 87 women who received business grants from WCU.
With the grant, Cherkas was able to purchase a large dehydrator and a high-capacity freezer to increase production. “Thanks to the grant, I’m motivated to keep moving forward,” she said.
She hopes to scale up when her husband returns from war and to buy a van that he can use to make deliveries, and to provide employment to members of her family who were displaced from Crimea.
“My goal is to achieve financial security, provide for my family, and continue to grow,” she said.
Helping families heal
WCU, in partnership with Oxfam, has reached 14,187 people with cash assistance, workforce re-entry initiatives, and socio-economic programs. Another woman who has regained purpose through WCU is Olena Melnychenko, a former teacher living in Chernihiv. Like Cherkas, she lost her job when the war began.
Melnychenko’s background is in psychology, and she began to dream about opening her own psychology practice. With support from Oxfam and WCU, she was able to buy what she needed to start consulting with patients, including items for sensory therapy.
Now, she operates a practice for teenagers and parents, helping them navigate challenges, and aspires to offer courses for parents whose children are starting school. Melnychenko hopes to inspire other women to see that it is possible to start over at any age.
*names have been changed