Publication

UNICEF Ukraine winter response for vulnerable families with children 2025-2026

30 January 2026

Ukraine’s bitter cold winter weather – dropping regularly to -20°C – combined with the cumulative destruction of housing and energy and heating infrastructure are making winter seasons increasingly dangerous for children. This is exacerbated by a poverty rate which has increased from 43 per cent in 2021 to 65 per cent in 2023 for households with children and the fact that there are 3.3 million people (including 564,000 children) still displaced inside Ukraine.

UNICEF’s 2024–2025 winter response, funded at 99.8 per cent of its US$100 million appeal, reached 2.3 million people, including 380,000 children, with critical support through cash assistance, school and health facility support and district heating upgrades. 

In 2025-2026, UNICEF appealed for $65 million to meet the needs of at least one million vulnerable people including 170,000 children. Based on lessons learned from previous winter campaigns, UNICEF response will build on the efficacy and cost efficiency of cash transfers to households and schools as well as the sustainable impact of district heating repairs.

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