Author: Valentyna Chabanova-Babak, Content Manager, Link Platform

For two years now, the Link local humanitarian response coordination mechanism team has been identifying unnoticed and unmet needs of residents of de-occupied communities in southern Ukraine and helping partner organizations provide targeted assistance to those who need it. The mechanism is implemented by the Legal Development Network in partnership with the Czech humanitarian organization People in Need, funded by the UK government.

The village of Krutyi Yar is located in the Chornobayivska community of Kherson Oblast. The settlement lies off the main roads: six kilometers to the highway in one direction and 14 kilometers in the other. To the nearest neighboring settlement — the village of Kyselivka — is eight kilometers. Due to this location, aid is not delivered here very often.

Maryna Nevhozha, Director of the Municipal Institution “Rural Club of Krutyi Yar Village,” Acting Village Head

“Humanitarian organizations only reach us in dry weather. If it rains, we gather with the guys in cars and drive ourselves to neighboring villages to pick up aid. The village feels somewhat ‘offended’ because neighboring villages: Posad-Pokrovske, Kyselivka, Zelenyi Hai receive more diverse aid, while they don’t want to come to us because there’s no road,” says Maryna Nevhozha, director of the municipal institution “Rural Club of Krutyi Yar Village,” who is currently acting as village head.

Before the full-scale war, 120 people lived in Krutyi Yar; now there are 86. Most residents are pensioners, as well as internally displaced persons from other villages in Kherson Oblast where the security situation is worse. In addition, 11 children live in the village, the youngest of whom is several months old. When the baby was born, the mother and child needed diapers, a stroller, and a bathtub. Maryna Nevhozha turned to Oleksandr Honchar, coordinator of the Link humanitarian response team in Kherson Oblast, for help.

“Oleksandr very quickly organized aid for the family: they gave us a stroller, diapers, baby household chemicals, and a bathtub. All of this happened within a week,” says Maryna Nevhozha.

The Link platform performs a unifying function between humanitarian organizations and communities with unmet needs. Partners receive reliable information about where exactly aid is lacking and can promptly direct resources to where they will have the greatest effect.

From right to left: Oleksandr Honchar, coordinator of the Link humanitarian response team in Kherson Oblast; Maksym Reveha, head of the Kherson branch of the international charitable foundation “Patriot UA”

“Link simplifies the aid delivery mechanism and makes it possible to understand the needs in remote communities of Kherson Oblast,” says Maksym Reveha, head of the Kherson branch of the international charitable foundation “Patriot UA.”

It was Patriot UA that promptly met the need of a Krutyi Yar village resident for children’s items. This is not the only interaction between the foundation and the settlement. In spring, the organization provided local residents with seeds for gardens.

“These were comprehensive sets: carrots, beets, cabbage, cucumbers, tomatoes — everything necessary for each family. We received 41 sets, as well as several additional ones for large families. This need was met very quickly, even before it became warm enough for planting,” says Maryna Nevhozha.

A distinctive feature of Link’s work is constant, bi-weekly verification of each need from two or more sources. Thus, all requests on the Link platform are current. This is achieved through constant communication with informants in de-occupied settlements. Currently, this is over 900 people: representatives of local government, volunteers, doctors, teachers, social workers.

“Oleksandr (Oleksandr Honchar — author’s note) and the girls help us a lot: they constantly call and ask about our affairs and needs. Few people reach us, even the Red Cross didn’t know about the existence of Krutyi Yar village until they saw the sign. We are very grateful to Link for such care,” says Maryna Nevhozha.

The example of Krutyi Yar village in Chornobayivska community demonstrates the effectiveness of the Link mechanism: combining unnoticed and unmet community needs with the capabilities of humanitarian organizations. As a result, residents of de-occupied communities can receive targeted and prompt assistance.

The material was prepared by the Legal Development Network in partnership with the Czech humanitarian organization People in Need, funded by the UK government.

The conclusions and interpretations of collected information presented in the material are solely the position of the authors and do not reflect the opinions of the donors and project partners.