Charities and aid agencies have called on the government to do more to help Ukrainians that have been left homeless as a result of the conflict, accusing President Poroshenko of breaking a promise to provide all displaced people with adequate housing.
An estimated 1.4 million people have been forced to leave their homes since the war in Ukraine's east broke out in April last year, leaving the country with one of the highest levels of internally displaced people (IDPs) in the world.
Internal displacement nears 1.4 million people in Ukraine and continues to increase @Refugees http://t.co/DPG1BRaKKg pic.twitter.com/0o0AgKRkHL
— UNHCR Ukraine (@UNHCRUkraine) July 22, 2015
Instead of being housed and looked after through Ukrainian government programs, many fleeing Ukrainians have been forced to rely on charities and volunteer groups for basic needs such as food, clothing and shelter.
#Ukraine: the world's unseen #refugee crisis. 2M ppl r now #refugees or internally displaced. http://t.co/UR0VfJslmD pic.twitter.com/uBjWTct2qi
— UNHCR Central Europe (@RefugeesCE) July 27, 2015
In fact, the UN refugee agency UNHCR, estimates that less than 5 percent of IDPs are actually being housed in recognized asylum centers, while it also says that approximately five million Ukrainians — one ninth of the population — are in need of some sort of humanitarian assistance.
Lack of Services Driving Up Prices
The lack of government services has also led to accusations that landlords are trying to cash in on the crisis, with reports suggesting that some property owners in cities like Kiev and Lvov are trebling rental prices due to the chronic shortage of suitable accommodation.
#Ukraine faces "hidden crisis" as displacement soars http://t.co/h0bfqlgd1B @Natalia_Ojewska @Refugees pic.twitter.com/rxkHP8jinE
— Emma Batha (@EmmaBatha) July 27, 2015
Wasyl Gelbych, head of housing subsidies and benefits at the Department of Social Protection in Lvov, told Reuters that the Poroshenko government had a responsibility to address the issue:
"We would be willing to accept many IDPs, but we do not know where they could stay, because the government has done nothing to create places for them."
UNHCR spokeswoman Nina Sorokopud likened the situation to a hidden emergency, saying that Ukraine's refugee situation wasn't visible on the streets due to the help and support offered by charities and community groups.
However, the government has been warned that the situation is worsening and would have further devastating effects unless adequate solutions were introduced.
No Money, No Work
As a result of a lack of concrete action to solve the refugee problem, many IDPs were being forced to move to isolated villages in the Ukrainian countryside, rather than the cities.
This was creating further problems for Ukrainians, as there was a lack of employment opportunities in many of the villages that refugees were moving to, therefore prohibiting many from earning a living.
#Ukraine: A disabled man sits on the porch of his damaged home in Granitnoye. We helped him repair his roof & windows pic.twitter.com/dqyQ9mI5X1
— UN Refugee Agency (@Refugees) July 27, 2015
Charities have also attacked the Kiev government's monthly allowance of approximately $20 given to IDPs, which has been described as widely inadequate.
More than 6,500 people have been killed as a result of the fighting in Ukraine since April last year, with many communities in the conflict zones of the country's east suffering a devastating humanitarian crises as a result of being cut off from basic supplies such as water, shelter and medicine.
Despite several ceasefire agreements being signed between Kiev forces and eastern Ukrainian separatist groups, fighting continues on an almost daily basis.
