As ongoing efforts continue in response to the Ukrainian Crisis EFN’s collaboration with key stakeholders to bring resources, information, and aid to our partners around Europe has taken many different forms. This comes as traffickers continue to change their tactics to leverage the volatility of the situation at present. Below is a summary of our coordinated response as a network for the months of April and May.

At the start of the crisis, EFN began holding weekly Emergency Response Meetings to help connect organisations and first responders on the ground. At this stage, as we continue to hold these meetings, the emergency response has evolved into understanding the latest trafficking techniques and putting in place protection and safeguarding measures to mitigate these activities. This is crucial as refugees have begun to move into homes, or are seeking employment opportunities in their new country of residence and therefore are an easy target for traffickers.

EFN has also been a part of the United Nations and informal cluster group held weekly that discusses coordinated efforts on the local level. This call also focuses on strengthening advocacy and legislative responses to the crisis.

EFN’s second webinar in the Trauma Care series focused on individuals working with Ukrainian refugees. The webinar discussed self-care and secondary trauma given the swift manner in which our partners needed to respond when the war first broke out. Another dimension of trauma care EFN has been working in is to connect trauma specialists and trauma information resources to individuals, regions, and churches to ensure there is a support system in place for both themselves and the refugees affected.

What EFN has learnt over the course of this crisis is that our partners require information that is quick and easy to understand. At the outset, EFN began putting together top tips in a short and sharp manner to help churches and organisations that were welcoming refugees. These tips were published on our website and social media platforms. Now, the Trauma Group has published Top Tips for Trauma-Informed Response and Safety in the same format and it has been disseminated to individuals and organisations that are especially involved in the area of trauma response.

Now that the initial wave of refugees has crossed the border, traffickers have moved their activity to refugee camps and online platforms, banking on the desperation, vulnerability, and confusion of Ukrainians that were forced to flee. Our coordinated response as a network continues to be imperative in ensuring that every person has the opportunity to live in freedom and dignity and to flourish.

To view the full  impact report, click here.