2024/12/30
Key Results of Our Psychological and Humanitarian Directions.
In 2024, we brought warmth to the Kharkiv region, offering both mental and practical support through our psychological and humanitarian initiatives.
🌈 Psychological support in action:
This year, we actively worked to ensure the psychological well-being of women and LGBTQ+ people. As part of our compensation programme, we covered the costs for psychological consultations (PSS), making an important step towards supporting the community’s mental health.
We reimbursed psychotherapy expenses for 343 women and LGBTQ+ individuals, funding 1,380 sessions with a total cost of 1,431,666 UAH.
We organised a series of group events and participated in festivals, raising awareness about the importance of mental health. Additionally, we conducted outreach events in communities and friendly spaces to reach as many people as possible.
Special attention was given to supporting survivors of gender-based violence by preparing assessments of their psychological state.
🌈 Key events:
Two training sessions on “Together Against Gender-Based Violence” and five supervision sessions for 30 specialists who learned to collaborate effectively with law enforcement agencies.
Two festivals dedicated to mental and physical health, featuring over 20 activities and attended by more than 200 participants.
A lecture on misinformation, distressing news, and emotional resilience during an information warfare, helping attendees find balance in challenging times.
🌈 Feedback: What people say about the Psychological Support Programme:
“At last, at the age of 37, I feel NORMAL. I have gained a sense of inner stability that does not depend on anyone else. Only now I can be reliable and steady for my children.”
“The sessions give me so much; after them, I feel as if I am coming back to life. They truly provide support and a sense of stability.”
«I looked forward to every session and joined each one with a smile.»
This year, we focused on providing warmth and comfort to communities in greatest need of support, particularly Shevchenkove, a settlement in the Kharkiv region that had a population of around 19,700 before Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Today, residents, especially women, face numerous challenges due to destroyed infrastructure. Constant shelling, power outages, and a lack of heating have made their lives significantly harder.
Winters in the Kharkiv region are cold and harsh. In January 2024, nighttime temperatures dropped to -15°C, making warm clothing, heaters, and proper footwear not a luxury but a necessity.
Most women in the community are elderly and do not always have the means to purchase even basic warm clothing or footwear. In these conditions, every form of assistance is crucial to ensuring warmth and comfort during the coldest period of the year.
🫂 Key achievements:
Assistance to Shevchenkove during the winter of 2023–2024: 441 winter protection kits were provided, including heaters, blankets, torches, power banks, footwear, and thermal clothing.
Support for the LGBTQ+ community in Kharkiv: provided voucher assistance for 100 people. They could use them to buy the products that are very much needed for their household in winter like powerbanks, warm clothes etc.
Support for women in Kharkiv: issued vouchers for 81 women.
Additional aid programme for residents of the Kupiansk: distributed 149 warm women’s tracksuits.
With the support of the NGO «Special Workshop – Art for Autism», we also assisted the military personnel of the 23rd Brigade by providing hygiene supplies, including toilet paper, soap, dishwashing liquid, and wipes.
🫂 Reviews: what women from Shevchenkove say about the support:
Cash and voucher assistance (CVA) refers to all programmes where cash (or vouchers for goods or services) is provided directly to affected people to meet one or several basic humanitarian needs.
«Hello, girls from the NGO "WA Sphere". I want to say a big THANK YOU to all of you. Last winter, my daughter and I received warm suits, shoes, and a blanket that keep us warm. We are very grateful. Wishing you success, "WA Sphere".»
«My name is Tetiana Honcharova, I am 47 years old. I live in Shevchenkove, a frontline village in the Kupiansk district. Last year, I received a winter kit from the NGO "WA Sphere". I am very thankful. The suit and shoes are still helping me – they keep me warm. The heater and torch are also useful. Thank you for your support.»
WPHF, Care, ActionAid, DEC, DANIDA, Kvinna till Kvinna, DanChurchAid, People in Need, and UWF — we achieved this thanks to you.
We will share more updates soon. Stay tuned, take care of yourselves, and don't miss out on current opportunities.
At the moment, an individual psychological counselling programme is available for women and the LGBTQ+ community in the Kharkiv region. Find details and registration via the link.
