“Ukrainian Food Banks Federation deserves respect for its unceasing help,” Alla Maliienko, executive secretary of the Kyiv organization of NUJU

During the year, the Ukrainian Food Banks Federation (UFBF) handed over 2,000 tons of humanitarian aid to the population of Ukraine, focusing on regions affected by russian shelling. Among them are hundreds of journalist families who continue to receive food packages thanks to the joint memorandum of cooperation that NUJU and UFBF signed last year.

The UFBF is a non-profit charitable organization (under the international associations called the European Food Banks Federation (FEBA) and the Global FoodBanking Network), which collects food products from producers, trade organizations, catering establishments, and private individuals and transfers them to those who are in trouble. The Federation’s important activities and comprehensive assistance to Ukrainians in need were discussed on May 17 during the conference titled Food Donor Day: Results and Prospects held in the Ukrinform press center.

“The number of Ukrainians on the brink of starvation is increasing every day. The team of the UFBF works tirelessly every day to provide food and make life easier for those who are faced with such trials,” said Dmytro Shkrabatovskyi, the head of the UFBF, welcoming the conference participants.

The summary of the work of the UFBF was held on the occasion of Food Donor Day, which is celebrated on the third Saturday of May. It was founded last year by the UFBF, announcing it for the first time in the Ukrinform press center.

He noted that internally displaced persons, large families, pensioners, and people with disabilities need the most humanitarian aid today. Residents of Kyiv, Kharkiv, Chernihiv, and Sumy Regions receive the maximum number of food kits from the fund. Less – Lviv, Zhytomyr, Cherkasy, Mykolayiv, Odesa, Zaporizhzhia, Dnipropetrovsk, and Donetsk.

According to Shkrabatovskyi, the main mission of the UFBF is to strengthen food safety and develop the culture of food consumption in society. During its work, the national association created a network of 47 public organizations and charitable foundations that work in 23 regions of Ukraine and are able to process the requests of the population on the ground.

The authorized representative of the FEBA and the Global Network of Food Banks, Jacques Vandenschrik, joined the discussion. He noted that due to russia’s aggression, the FEBA has significantly expanded the boundaries of its influence. Since the first day, the organization has been providing food aid to Ukrainian refugees in Europe. It has transferred a total of about EUR 7 million in financial aid.

“To notice, see, and honestly tell about important volunteer organizations is one of the main tasks of the NUJU!” noted Alla Maliienko, a representative of the Union at the press conference and executive secretary of the Kyiv organization of the NUJU.

According to her, the associations represented at the event, including the UFBF, deserve respect for their constant assistance to Ukrainians in need.

“Our goal is to see and timely highlight the activities of people who, sometimes under bullets and shelling, deliver help where it is vitally needed. I drew attention to the names of the organizations present here – Berehynia, Blahodiinist, Zrobymo Vse Sami – you really do everything yourself… When I look at strong women who carry 30-kilogram loads – it is simply beyond all praise. Ukrainians unite, and only together can we succeed. We are grateful to everyone. Let’s hold on!” added Alla Maliienko.

Thanks to the joint memorandum on cooperation between the UFBF and the NUJU, a considerable number of journalist families received and continue to receive food packages.

Each such package weighs 16 kg and includes 26 items of the most necessary food products: several types of cereals and canned stews, vermicelli, flour, oil, and even coffee, cookies, and candy.

The Humanitarian Nova Poshta postal service delivers them free of charge to Journalists’ Solidarity Centers of the NUJU, and from there, the sets are handed over to colleagues who need help: internally displaced persons, journalism veterans, large families, etc.

ABOUT JSC

The Journalists’ Solidarity Centers is an initiative of the NUJU implemented with the support of the International and European Federations of Journalists and UNESCO. The initiative is designated to help media representatives working in Ukraine during the war. The Centers operate in Kyiv, Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk, Chernivtsi, Zaporizhzhia, and Dnipro and provide journalists with organizational, technical, legal, psychological, and other types of assistance.

ABOUT UNESCO

UNESCO is the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization. It contributes to peace and security by promoting international cooperation in education, sciences, culture, communication, and information. UNESCO promotes knowledge sharing and the free flow of ideas to accelerate mutual understanding. It is the coordinator of the UN Action Plan on the Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity, which aims to create a free and safe environment for journalists and media workers, thus strengthening peace, democracy, and sustainable development worldwide. UNESCO is working closely with its partner organizations in Ukraine to provide support to journalists on the ground.

The designations employed and the presentation of material throughout this digest do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of UNESCO concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city, or area or its authorities or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.

The authors are responsible for the choice and the presentation of the facts contained in this digest and for the opinions expressed therein, which are not necessarily those of UNESCO and do not commit to the organization.

NUJU Information Service, photo by UFBF