Global Diaspora Humanitarian Hub on Ukraine Response
- The GDC News
- Mar 24, 2022
- 4 min read
Updated: Apr 9, 2022
The Ukraine crisis has caused over 10 million people displaced within and from the country, many diaspora organizations (DO) have made stepped-up efforts to provide humanitarian support in neighbouring countries and remotely.
Our Humanitarian Response
The Global Diaspora Confederation has set up its Global Humanitarian Hub to enable diaspora organizations
and individuals to provide humanitarian support, in crises such as the crisis in Ukraine. Participants to the hub include diaspora organizations and supporters, coordinated by the Global Diaspora Confederation, and supported by
key humanitarian actors including the International Organization for Migration (IOM), UN Migration and DEMAC.
(Photos above showed the diasporas' situation in Poland, heartfelt thanks to our GDC vertical lead who keeps travelling from Italy to pick up diasporas but so much still needs to be done)
Your kind humanitarian contributions at this challenging time mean immensely and we encourage more diaspora organizations to also help where they can. Help can be simple but impactful.
Translation
You may recommend community members to help translate latest information into languages of neighbouring countries to Ukraine so we can alert humanitarian actors, supportive NGOs, and more diasporas.
We are looking for translation support on German, Hungarian, Lithuanian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Slovak, Ukrainian, Czech, Georgian, and more languages.
Referrals
Updating and News Sharing
Coordination and events planning
Diaspora Humanitarian Forum on Ukraine Response
The forum is a global platform for diaspora organizations to collaboratively learn from and support each other’s speedy and tangible responses. The forum also offers a space for collaboration with each other and relevant humanitarian actors as applicable. Here are the four types of Diaspora Organizations that can provide different humanitarian support:
- Diaspora Organization with origins in Ukraine
- Ukrainian Diaspora Organization in neighbouring countries
- Diaspora Organization from any of the neighbouring countries
- Any type of Diaspora Organization worldwide
If you wish to show solidarity or support for people affected in the conflict, please do join our upcoming events:
Saturday 9th April 2022 at 2pm (GMT+1) / 4pm (Ukraine Time)
Saturday, 26th March at 2pm (GMT) / 4pm (Ukraine Time) - completed
Useful Contacts:
GDC Focal Point
(for diaspora organizations seeking or sharing humanitarian needs and updates)
IOM Information Hotline (for persons fleeing Ukraine)
527 | 0-800-505-501 | toll-free
IOM Emotional Support Hotline (for persons fleeing Ukraine)
0-800-211-444 | toll-free
IOM's iDiaspora response on Ukraine crisis
Global Shelter Cluster (temporary emergency shelter coordination)
What does the hub do?
Our hub is an important focal point for advocacy at the global level.
Please feel free to share our flyers that summarize our humanitarian hub's main work with your diaspora communities.
We are still looking for support to help translate our flyers into other languages.
Diaspora Organizations' alerts, updates and sharing for all stakeholders:
24 March - African diasporas
22 March - South East and East Asian diasporas
16 March - Nepali diasporas
Hub updates:
April 2022
April has come fast. The Global Diaspora Humanitarian Hub launched its first Humanitarian Forum meeting on 26th March, supported by IOM and DEMAC. The meeting has been exceedingly successful with vital diasporic needs and challenges shared by DOs from across the world. Practices have also been learnt and noted while recommendations were made. After the meeting, DO leaders agreed it is important to have the support from GDC on global coordination so that impact of DOs' work can maximized.
This was also followed by the Global Diaspora Summit in Ireland where GDC addressed head of delegations from over 20 countries on its overall work and humanitarian hub.
On 9th April, the Humanitarian Hub organized its second meeting to meet with 30 diaspora organizations across the world with also speakers from Senior Thematic Specialist at IOM Regional Office in Vienna overseeing the supportive work in Ukraine and neighbouring countries, and Executive Director from Ukrainian World Congress. In addition to diaspora organizations from five continents, EU Global Diaspora Facility also participated to support. Recommendations are being compiled to put forward to the humanitarian actors in the coming month. One important suggestion we heard was whether GDC is or can be part of the humanitarian cluster system to offer response to diaspora organizations' needs.
Updates and invitation letter to second forum meeting:
March 2022
As our Emergency Response Team work progresses, we have been working very closely on a daily basis with colleagues of key humanitarian actors including International Organization for Migration (IOM) and liaising with Diaspora Emergency Action & Coordination (DEMAC).
So far, GDC has reached out to its entire diaspora organization networks especially over 50 diaspora organizations related to Ukrainian and its neighbouring countries to learn, collaborate on and address humanitarian needs. In addition to this new information hub page, which promotes useful information and updates from GDC and its humanitarian partners such as iDiaspora, GDC is also launching the Diaspora Humanitarian Forum to further humanitarian advocacy and map out the capacities that different diaspora organizations have to offer for strengthened coordination.
To deliver effective support, GDC continues to act as the focal point for diaspora organizations and will go as far as it takes to address the diaspora challenges at the global level.
Please see our invitation to join our Humanitarian Hub:
For IOM situation reports, please visit here
February 2022
Since the beginning of the crisis, we immediately checked in on colleagues of diaspora organizations and IOM in Ukraine. As the severity of the crisis has caused immense challenges to people fleeing Ukraine including many third country nationals, GDC decided to issue its solidarity statement in response to IOM Director General António Vitorino's statement.
Diaspora organizations are at the forefront of the challenges and they also need support and reassurance. Because of this subsequently we have stepped up to set up our own Emergency Response Team to deliver our statement.
December 2021
Last year, a representative of the International Organization for Migration’s (IOM) Ukraine office was invited to speak at our Europe Day of the Global Diaspora Week. Given our growing focus on humanitarian assistance, I asked how GDC may support in case any crisis occurs. Although no one anticipated this to happen, this has placed GDC in a position to continue to liaise with IOM since the beginning of the Ukraine-Russia conflict.
About the Hub
Our Humanitarian Hub on Ukraine Response is run by GDC Emergency Response Team.
In addition to the Ukraine crisis, there are also many diasporas who are experiencing tough challenges. May we share our support and thoughts with all diasporas in need across the world and GDC continues to assist where we can during this difficult time.
We do not provide medical, financial and legal advice. For life emergency, please always seek professional help from local authorities without delay. Please keep well and take care.
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