Ukraine Response Romania – The microgrants programme & the sclr approach (in photos)
Ukraine Response Romania – The microgrants programme & the sclr approach (in photos)
Starting with February 2023, the Ukraine Response team of HEKS/EPER Romania has been implementing a microgrants programme, targeting Ukrainian refugees in the west, northwest and northeast of Romania. This programme is meant to assist Ukrainians under temporary protection (UUTPs) currently living in Romania, coming from conflict zones, while also supporting small-scale organisations involved in responding to these people’s needs.
All project activities are funded by DEC through Christian Aid, a UK-based foundation with a mission to fight global poverty.
Over the last 3 months, thousands of Ukrainian people relocated to Romania have been assisted with multi-purpose cash assistance, food supplies, hygiene kits, clothes and shoes, hot meals, transport, information and other services through our microgrant program. And the numbers are steadily growing!
The Ukraine Response team took the opportunity to meet with all 7 subgrantees in person in Arad, Timisoara, Suceava, Iasi and Cluj-Napoca during monitoring visits. We discovered a whole network of dedicated people, all driven by the sole purpose of assisting Ukrainians fleeing from the war to their best capacity.
After funding small NGOs and supporting them in implementing their activities, the natural next step was to empower Ukrainian initiative groups who want to help their own larger communities thrive in the current context. With funds from the same donor, we’re running a sclr (survivor and community-led response) pilot programme, which involves transferring power from organizations to the affected communities.
Specifically, crisis survivors can have their problem-solving ideas funded while also being responsible for all the stages of a project: problem identification, project writing, money management and implementation. There is huge power in self-help to strengthen one’s dignity, psychosocial recovery and resilience so we’re happy to be able to support and explore this approach in Romania.
The first round of sclr applications (Cluj-Napoca only) has been selected for funding and we cannot wait to see all those creative ideas become reality! More details on how new initiative groups can currently apply can be found here.
