Today, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Luigi Di Maio, attended, together with Deputy Minister Marina Sereni, the first meeting of the Working Group for the coordination of initiatives supporting Ukrainian minors, chaired by the Minister for Equal Opportunities and Family, Elena Bonetti.
According to latest UNHCR data, over one million people have already fled Ukraine, reaching the neighbouring countries and, should the conflict escalate further, UNHCR expects up to four million refugees, aside from the possibly six million internally displaced.
Minister Di Maio confirmed Italy’s firm support to the Ukrainian people and that the Farnesina will fully collaborate with the Working Group chaired by Minister Bonetti, the goal being the setting up of an operational forum of dialogue with the civil society, aimed at extending protection and humanitarian assistance to minors in the context of the Ukrainian crisis.
This initiative is part of a greater programme of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation aimed at supporting the Ukrainian government and people. At a humanitarian level, over 1 million Euros have already been allocated to the activities of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and some five million tonnes of humanitarian aid have been donated to the Ukrainian people, while a set of contributions is being assessed in response to the funding appeal launched by the United Nations, as well as the shipping of humanitarian aid. Recently, the Farnesina has set up a coordination group to monitor incoming flows from Ukraine; the group includes all the relevant national authorities, the National Asylum Committee, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the International Organisation for Migration.
Further initiatives supporting Ukrainian refugees in neighbouring countries shall be taken up soon through the Migration Fund, with particular attention to Moldovia, so as to respond to the priorities identified on the site by UNHCR.