Three years of large-scale war caused a large number of victims – no precise data is available, but there are reports of one million dead and wounded – destruction, stolen and humiliated lives, and forced migration. The Ukrainian population has dramatically decreased from 41, 5 million in 2021: 6, 9 million refugees abroad, 4 million internally displaced persons, while about 5 million Ukrainian citizens are in the occupied regions.
War generates poverty. According to the latest UN report, 12,7 million people depend on humanitarian aid and more than half the population lives below the poverty line. So many people are vulnerable - including the elderly, the sick, the people with disabilities and large families - and impoverished by the war; not to mention the families of the victims, the prisoners, the wounded and the mutilated, veterans, victims of bombings, and people suffering from mental illness, both civilians and military personnel. The energy crisis, a consequence of the Russian army's missile attacks on power stations, has caused the interruption of electricity, water and heating in many regions. Many families now live in damaged houses or buildings not suitable as temperatures become freezing.
Over the last three years the Community has carried out a vast solidarity programme in the Ukraine. Thanks to a consolidated presence in the country since 1991, Sant'Egidio has been able to carry out humanitarian interventions that respond to the growing needs of the population: 168 humanitarian shipments (3,200 tonnes of aid) providing 2 million people with healthcare supplies and 450,000 people with basic necessities (food, clothing, blankets, personal hygiene products). Thanks to this solidarity, relief was provided to many victims of war and their most urgent needs were met. Moreover, it has also restored meaning to the lives of hundreds of displaced young people and adults, who have joined the daily and free commitment of Sant'Egidio. Helping others has helped them recover from the traumatic experiences they lived through during the war and has allowed them to again look to the future with hope.
Let us not forget Ukraine on this sad anniversary. Let us keep offering help to those who are suffering because of the war: solidarity nourishes hope for peace.
