Humanitarians launched a renewed appeal for war-ravaged Ukraine that calls for $2.25 billion to provide assistance and protection to nearly nine million people.

The figure is more than double the initial appeal published just days after Russia invaded the country on February 24.

According to them, two months on, needs have continued to rise while the humanitarian response has expanded significantly in scale and scope, prompting a revision and extension of the Ukraine Flash Appeal until August 2022.

Ukraine has a population of 44 million, and the war has left some 15.7 million in need. The conflict has caused the world’s fastest-growing displacement crisis since World War II, uprooting nearly 13 million people.

More than seven million are internally displaced, while 5.2 million have crossed into neighbouring countries, such as Poland and beyond. The massive devastation of urban centres and the destruction of civilian infrastructure have severely disrupted healthcare and other critical services.

Last week, the UN Office in Ukraine reported that some 136 attacks on health care facilities had been recorded since the start of the war, representing nearly 70 per cent of worldwide attacks on the sector so far this year.

The updated flash appeal targets 8.7 million people, more than half of whom are women. It is organised under five main strategies, including delivering aid in the hardest-to-reach areas.

UN-led convoys have so far delivered supplies on five occasions, and more are planned in the coming weeks and months.

The plan further calls for assisting as close to people in need, including supporting organisations working in areas under threat and ensuring supplies are available in the event pipelines are cut off.

Humanitarians are also scaling up cash transfers to displaced people, with the number of people reached rising from just under 18,500 to more than 263,000 in the past three weeks alone.

The appeal places people, gender equality, and protection at the centre of the response and includes measures to enhance accountability and prevent sexual exploitation and abuse.

Humanitarians also will ensure their work is principled, realistic and feasible, as well as suitable and accessible for all gender and age groups.

The revised plan comes ahead of the UN Secretary-General’s meetings this week with both the foreign ministers and presidents of Ukraine and Russia.

UN chief António Guterres has travelled to Moscow after meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Ankara on Monday.

The secretary-general will have a working meeting and lunch with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Tuesday and will be received by President Vladimir Putin.

(NAN)