Poland-based logistics company InPost responded quickly to the unfolding catastrophe on its border to offer relief and support to those Ukrainians remaining at home – and to the influx of refugees seeking sanctuary in Poland.

Since the outbreak of the war, Advent portfolio company InPost has supported a raft of humanitarian initiatives for the people of Ukraine.

Rafał Brzoska, CEO of InPost, said: “We have been helping since news of the first dramatic events reached us from Ukraine. We are supporting Polish cities in carrying out transport of collected items for our neighbours from Ukraine, and have so far managed to complete several dozen such drives.”lping since news of the first dramatic events reached us from Ukraine. We are supporting Polish cities in carrying out transport of collected items for our neighbours from Ukraine, and have so far managed to complete several dozen such drives.”

With a large cohort of Ukrainian, Russian and Belarusian employees, and many more Polish staff with strong family ties in Ukraine, InPost has taken steps to look after the mental wellbeing of its own employees via increased internal communication and the launch of a dedicated multi-language helpline. The company is also coordinating the individual efforts of employees wishing to volunteer, by gathering provisions and transporting them to wherever the need is greatest.

Advent portfolio company TK Elevator has made a significant donation to SOS Children’s Villages, a charity supporting families and children in Ukraine.

The organization has provided help for more than 15,000 people touched by the conflict. Its Ukraine emergency aid project is helping with the evacuation of children and families to safe areas, and providing them with accommodation in shelters, food and hygiene supplies, medical assistance and psychological trauma support.

TK Elevator, headquartered in Germany, has a long-standing partnership with SOS Children’s Villages. Its continuing support will assist the charity with its long-term priorities: reuniting families, meeting their relocation and housing costs, employing extra staff and increasing mental health support.

Mediq Norway – part of Advent portfolio company Mediq – is providing medical supplies for aid workers in Ukraine, and supporting humanitarian organizations in their vital relief efforts.

Working with the aid agency Human Bridge and sister company Mediq Sweden, it has donated equipment and consumables directly to Ukrainian care providers. The company has also been assisting the Norwegian Red Cross, providing supplies for field hospitals in the war-torn country.

Since the outbreak of war, the Norwegian Red Cross has stepped up its efforts to meet the humanitarian needs of the Ukrainian population – both those remaining within the country and those displaced by the fighting.

In cooperation with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), it has been supporting emergency relief work in Ukraine and its neighboring countries, transporting food and medical equipment in trailer convoys. Meanwhile, it has been engaged in ensuring the safe reception of refugees from the war in Norway and other destination countries.

Advent portfolio company Aareon Group has made a €25,000 donation to Médecins Sans Frontières, supporting its emergency response to the war in Ukraine.

The organization provides medical assistance to those affected by wars, epidemics and other disasters throughout the world. It is in contact with hospitals throughout Ukraine, offering much-needed supplies and training wherever they are most needed.

In places such as Kyiv, Odessa and Lviv, Médecins Sans Frontières has been training medics to prepare for mass casualty incidents and treat war wounds. It has sent experienced emergency and specialist staff to support its existing teams in Ukraine, and is also using telemedicine to provide remote training in areas such as trauma care.

The organization has also ramped up its presence in the countries surrounding Ukraine, including Poland, Moldova, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia. Its emergency teams are monitoring medical needs at the Ukrainian-Polish border, and visiting crossing points, transit centers and temporary shelters throughout the region.

Payment technology company Planet – part of the Advent portfolio – has donated to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), supporting its critical humanitarian mission in Ukraine.

Working with its partners in the wider Red Cross and Red Crescent movement, the ICRC saves and protects the lives of all victims of armed conflict and violence. It has swiftly mobilized to meet the needs of a population shattered by the Ukrainian conflict.

Its medics and engineers are aiming to ensure more than three million people can access clean water, and are working to improve the living conditions of more than 66,000 whose homes have been damaged by the fighting.

Advent International has donated US$650,000 to USA for UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, as part of its immediate effort to support those suffering because of the war in Ukraine. Since 1950s UNHCR has been saving lives, protecting rights, and building a better future for refugees, asylum seekers and stateless people.

As the conflict continues, the UNHCR estimates that at least five million people will be forced to leave the country, with millions more being displaced within Ukraine. UNHCR is working with the authorities, UN agencies, community groups and other partners to provide humanitarian assistance wherever possible.

The Advent donation will help enable UNHCR to provide cash support, emergency shelter and essential items – including blankets, containers for clean water, and plastic tarps to protect damaged homes and provide respite from the elements. The donation will also provide vital support to the most vulnerable refugees, including survivors of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), unaccompanied minors and children separated from their families.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is providing critical emergency aid for those caught up in the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine. Advent International is donating funds to help ensure this vital work can continue.

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Emergency shelter to Ukrainian refugees

Advent International has pledged US$650,000 to the ICRC – an organization at the forefront of the international relief effort for civilians in Ukraine. Its priority is to assist those most desperately in need.

Working with the Ukrainian Red Cross, the ICRC is distributing food, water and other essential items, supporting hospitals and healthcare facilities with medicines and equipment, repairing damaged homes and infrastructure, and helping to reconnect families separated by the conflict. The ICRC has been active in Ukraine since 2014. Civilians in the east of the country have already endured more than eight years of fighting. With the intensification of the conflict and its spread to other parts of the nation in early 2022, the ICRC has ramped up its response.

Additional staff arrived in Ukraine at the beginning of March, including medics, weapons contamination specialists and other emergency team members. With 600 staff engaged in the effort, this now represents one of the organization’s 10 biggest operations anywhere in the world.

Teams from the ICRC have also been dispatched to Hungary, Moldova, Poland, Romania and Russia to support a regional response, in cooperation with partners in the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. Logistical hubs have been set up in nations bordering Ukraine to ensure relief items can reach those who need them, even where local supply chains have been destroyed.

In parallel with its relief efforts on the ground, the ICRC has pledged to continue confidential, bilateral dialogue with those parties involved in the conflict, aiming to protect those most affected by the fighting.

Within just three weeks of war breaking out in Ukraine, over two million refugees had crossed the border into Poland. Overwhelmingly, it is women and children who have been forced to flee. Many of the people arriving have been traumatised by brutal warfare and left their homes and wider community with only what they carry on their arduous journey to safety. The range of facilities needed to support these women and children will be complex and long lasting.

Advent has committed part of its emergency Ukrainian relief fund to a joint venture run by the Omenaa Foundation and Ashoka, which will provide shelter and support to women and children in Poland – where the need is currently greatest.

The project will create safe centres that treat Ukrainian mothers and children with dignity and care and ensure they are well fed. It will also provide full access to legal, healthcare and psychological and cultural support to mothers as they seek to rebuild their lives in a new country. In addition, training and matching services will be provided to help women find the jobs that best suit their talents. Furthermore, at least 500 jobs will be created in areas where this new talent can work to improve the overall wellbeing of wider Polish society. For the children, the program has teamed up with Teach for Poland, so that every child will have a chance to discover and develop their own potential. It is building a team of teachers, psychologists and children’s entertainers to operate an educational programme that is purpose built around the needs of the Ukrainian children fleeing violence. Over time, the project aims to create 10 centres and care for the needs of at least 10,000 refugees.

The Omenaa Foundation was founded by Omenaa Mensah, a Polish TV star and businesswoman. The Foundation primarily focuses on providing The Omenaa Foundation was founded by Omenaa Mensah, a Polish TV star and businesswoman. The Foundation primarily focuses on providing education to children around the world who are deprived access to it. Traditionally it has operated in Africa and on providing computer equipment and other facilities to underprivileged kids in Poland. The foundation is collaborating with Ashoka, a global social impact charity, as well as other Polish charities and civic society groups to provide immediate help and support as Poland deals with this unprecedented wave of refugees.

Advent’s team in Germany have allotted their 2022 philanthropy budget to three charities working to provide relief to the fallout from the war in Ukraine.

Medecins Sans Frontieres (“MSF”) provides medical assistance to people around the world affected by conflict, epidemics, disasters, or exclusion from healthcare.  The group has operated in Ukraine since the initial Russian invasion in 2014, and is now repurposing its operations in light of the massive escalation in violence across the country. MSF is now deploying its rapidly depleting resources to those parts of the country where it sees the greatest need and the best opportunity to have a significant impact.

At the time of writing, initiatives include:

Humane Society International

Humane Society International works is an animal welfare charity that works around the globe to rescue and protect suffering animals. With thousands of animals in acute distress across Ukraine, MSI is working with groups in the region to help Ukrainian people and the animals in their care who have been devastated by Russia’s military invasion. The charity is also offering pet care packages and veterinary service to support refugees when they arrive at major transport hubs in Germany.

Ukraine-aid Berlin

Ukraine Aid-Berlin was founded by a diverse group of German and Ukrainian volunteers living in Germany to help meet the immediate needs of the people of Ukraine. The focus of their work is to support victims of the war by sending medical and humanitarian aid to Ukraine. The group collects much needed donations from various organizations across Germany and sends them directly to clinics and field hospitals on the frontline in Ukraine.