First disbursements under the refugee cash assistance program

Wybierz język

2 June 2023

by Michał Karski

The Diaconia Poland team and volunteers are preparing shipment of payment cards, to which cash assistance for refugees will be transferred (photo: Michał Karski)

Over 2,600 vulnerable families of refugees from Ukraine (over 7,500 people) will receive three-month cash assistance under the Diaconia Poland and Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe program. The first payments of this aid have just started.

Since March, Diaconia Poland and Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe have been running the next phase of the Multi-Purpose Cash Assistance Program (MPCA) for refugees from Ukraine. The aim of the program is to support the most vulnerable refugees. Individuals and families (households) who came from Ukraine to Poland after the outbreak of full-scale war in February last year, are registered and living in Poland, have never received similar assistance from any organisation and are in a difficult economic situation could apply for assistance.

From mid-March to early April, Diaconia Poland and Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe, in cooperation with local Lutheran parishes or non-governmental organizations, ran support points for registering for the program in fifteen Polish cities (we wrote about it here). After the registration was closed, the process of verifying the submitted applications continued until the beginning of May in order to select most vulnerable families (households). This process was based on the adopted prioritization system that takes into account situations such as disability, pregnancy, etc.

2,633 most vulnerable families (7,585 people) will receive three-month cash assistance in the form of prepaid debit cards. The amount of support depends on the size of the family (household). This aid is intended for the most urgent needs, refugees themselves decide how to use these funds. “Provided through debit cards that can be used in the stores for purchasing items or in the cash machines for money withdrawal, our assistance is offered in a dignified manner and with maximum flexibility for the refugees so that they can spend it according to their own needs and priorities,” says Hatem Efe, who coordinates the program in Poland on behalf of Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe.

Cards have already been sent to the families of refugees participating in the program. This week, the first disbursements of funds under the program began. They are made after the card is activated by the families (households) participating in the program.

This is the next phase of the MPCA Program for refugees from Ukraine run by the Diaconia Poland and Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe. In 2022, a similar program was implemented in Kalisz (central-western Poland; we wrote about it here), Bieruń-Lędziny County and Sosnowiec (southern). In addition, both organisations cooperate by supporting integration programs for refugees from Ukraine as well as Lutheran parishes that provide or wish to provide in their buildings accommodation for refugees (we wrote about it here).

If you face any problems, or have a complaint or feedback about our programs, you can contact our Complaint and Feedback Mechanism (in Polish and Ukrainian):