Russia, Red Cross helped 1.6 million people in 2022: half a million were refugees and displaced persons
Red Cross in Russia: more than 1.6 million people received aid and support in 2022 from the RRC, Russia’s oldest humanitarian organization. More than half a million of them are refugees and displaced persons from Donbass and Ukraine
This was reported by Pavel Savchuk, President of the Russian Red Cross, at a briefing on the results of the year.
2022, Red Cross in Russia: the briefing was held at the “Rossiya Segodnya” news agency
The discussed topic was the Russian Red Cross’ assistance to those in need, including people affected by the Ukrainian crisis, as well as various types of support provided.
“Throughout 2022, we reached more than 1.6 million people – that’s the number of people the Russian Red Cross helped.
They were taught first aid skills, fed, helped to find relatives, got free HIV testing, became blood or bone marrow donors, received additional education and so on. Of these 512,557 are refugees and displaced persons from Donbass and Ukraine”, – said Pavel Savchuk, President of the Russian Red Cross.
He also specified that of the 1.6 million, 360,000 are schoolchildren and students trained in first aid, 426,865 participate in the all-Russian blood donation activity, and 98,000 are participants in the action related to the World Tuberculosis Day.
Plans for the next year provide for active help to the Ukrainian crisis victims.
The decision was taken to expand geography of material and voucher support – from 10 to 32 regions.
Material payments will be available in 21 regions of the country, comparing with 10 regions at the moment: Belgorod, Voronezh, Bryansk, Orel, Tver, Rostov, Lipetsk, Kursk, Vladimir, Volgograd, Tambov, Tula, Penza, Ulyanovsk, Nizhny Novgorod, Kaluga regions, Moscow and Saint Petersburg, Krasnodar and Stavropol territories, as well as in the Republic of Tatarstan.
“Vouchers to grocery stores and clothing stores will be issued in 11 regions: Moscow region, Khabarovsk, Primorsk, Samara, Ryazan, Bashkortostan, Ivanovo, Yaroslavl, Novgorod, Perm and Vologda regional branches of the Russian Red Cross will participate in this work,” said Pavel Savchuk.
Twenty-two regional branches of the Russian Red Cross are now involved in assisting refugees and displaced persons, and many types of provided support have never been delivered in Russia before
“For example, we started active provision of voucher support – giving people opportunity to buy certain goods themselves.
In particular, we distributed almost 8.7 thousand vouchers to buy clothes in Kursk, Belgorod, Voronezh, and Rostov regions. Another 51,634 people received vouchers for pharmacies, and 30,851 – for grocery stores,” he said.
Altogether 93,618 people received vouchers. The RRC also paid to vulnerable categories of refugees and migrants from 5 to 15 thousand rubles, depending on the size of the family – such payments were received by 54,640 people in Voronezh, Kaluga, Kursk, Belgorod, Rostov, Penza, Ulyanovsk, Tula and Vladimir regions and in Moscow.
In addition, in July 2022, the Russian Red Cross opened the country’s first mobile aid station for refugees and displaced persons from Ukraine and Donbass. It operates in the Belgorod Region, and more than 3,000 people received help there. Most of them, more than 44%, applied for humanitarian aid and material benefits, about 10% received psychological help, about 190 more people applied for family reunification and 113 received vouchers for clothing stores.
Also, at the mobile RRC helpdesk, specialists advise people who apply for pensions, receive a lump sum payment from the state, help them plan their route to a particular city, connect their cell phones, buy tickets and much more. Since last summer, more than 540 people received advice from the mobile center’s staff.
Next year, the Russian Red Cross plans to open another mobile station in the Rostov Region and five more in other regions
Nearly 60,000 people have called the RRC Ukraine Crisis Hotline (8 800 700 44 50), which has been operating since February. It offers psychological support, assistance in reuniting family links, consultations on obtaining humanitarian aid, acquiring legal residency status, and accessing medical services.
Over 14,000 people contacted the RRC hotline (8 800 250 18 59) to receive psychological help and psychosocial support, and more than 18,000 people did so in person, i.e. in temporary accommodation points and out of them.
In particular, in the Belgorod Region such support was provided to 353 people, in the Vladimir Region 568 individual and 216 group consultations were held, and in the Voronezh regional office about 200 people daily request psychosocial support and psychological first aid.
“Now the Russian Red Cross psychological first aid hotline has about 100 volunteers, and a total of about 250 people have tried their hand in this role since February.
Many of them get specialized education, some are practicing professionals,” said the Chairman of the Russian Red Cross.
With the RRC support, 1,842 tons of humanitarian aid were collected and delivered – clothing, footwear, basic necessities including hygiene kits, baby products, furniture, appliances, stationery and much more.
Russia, the Red Cross also equipped temporary accommodation points: 1,024 items of household appliances and medical equipment were handed over
A total of 45,000 refugees and displaced persons received assistance in Voronezh Region and over 17,800 in Belgorod Region.
The largest humanitarian aid warehouse was opened in the Rostov Region in summer and keeps operating on, with more than 100 tons of humanitarian aid accepted, packed and distributed to the needy during the entire period of its operation.
In Tula Region, 297 first year pupils received school kits by September 1, and in Ulyanovsk Region, 1,861 food kits and 1,735 hygiene kits were distributed to the needy.
According to the RRC President, first aid training has been active over the past year
“Demand for training has really increased compared to previous years by about 30%. We have already tripled our capacity, with 900 more instructors and 70 more training centers.
In addition to training schoolchildren and students, as well as full-time master classes, the Russian Red Cross has launched special first aid classes for mobilized people.
According to Pavel Savchuk, “such master classes are held in 22 regions of the country at collecting points, as well as in regional branches.
Mobilized Russians learn first aid procedures for severe bleeding and wounds, and cardiopulmonary resuscitation.
The classes are based on the RRC’s first aid training in emergency situations, outside Zone of Action 103”.
In addition, the Russian Red Cross aims to develop a specialized school course, to be implemented across the country on a permanent basis.
It also plans to expand its own first aid training program – not only for children over 12, as is the case now, but also for elementary schoolchildren.
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