Situation Analysis

Since the beginning of the Russian invasion one month ago, the war has led to the senseless loss of thousands of lives; the displacement of ten million people, mainly women and children; the systematic destruction of essential infrastructure; and skyrocketing food and energy prices worldwide. Ukraine has been rapidly emerging as one of the world’s most complex emergencies with steadily growing humanitarian needs. The fighting has compelled displacement on a massive scale, forcing many civilians to flee their homes, including to neighbouring countries. Unless the conflict ceases, thousands of additional families will be forcibly displaced.

United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Pramila Patten, expressed grave concerns on the rapidly deteriorating situation in Ukraine and urgently called for the protection of civilians, especially women and girls, who are disproportionately affected by armed conflict and displacement. “This conflict is already severely impacting the safety and security of civilians, especially women and girls, who are at heightened risk of violence”, stated Special Representative Patten in her statement on 28 February 2022. “I call on all parties to uphold the human rights and dignity of all people, exercise restraint, and ensure full compliance with international humanitarian and human rights law, including the categorical prohibition of all forms of sexual violence”, escalating the scale of the already dire humanitarian situation, and increasing the risk of sexual violence and exploitation.

Joint Communiqué/Framework of Cooperation

A Framework of Cooperation (FoC) between the Government of Ukraine and the United Nations was signed in May 2022. The FoC focuses on building capacity to monitor and report on crimes of conflict-related sexual violence, strengthen service provision, and establish referral pathways and reinforce the national institutions capacity to ensure accountability for such violations. It can be accessed here.