Tag: Ukraine

Serbia extended temporary protection for refugees from Ukraine for an additional year

Posted on by Milutin

The Government of the Republic of Serbia extended the duration of temporary protection for refugees from Ukraine for an additional year. The Government concluded that the reasons for temporary protection still exist, as a result of which it is extended for another year, until 18 March 2024. This decision is in line with the approach of the European Union in managing the situation of mass influx of people caused by the international armed conflict in Ukraine.

The decisions are based on the Law on Asylum and Temporary Protection, which stipulates that temporary protection will be granted to persons who were forced to leave their country of origin or habitual residence and who cannot return to permanent and safe living conditions due to the prevailing situation in that country. The temporary protection mechanism was first activated in Serbia on 17 March 2022.

Based on the Decision of the Government of Serbia, the Asylum Office issued 1,214 decisions approving temporary protection in the period from its entry into force until 1 March 2023. A total of 1,229 people applied for approval of temporary protection, of which 836 were women and 393 were men, including 304 children. There were no unaccompanied children among the persons who requested temporary protection.

According to the Government Decision, temporary protection can be granted, in addition to citizens of Ukraine, to foreigners who had a regular stay in Ukraine. The largest number of persons granted temporary protection are citizens of Ukraine (1,166), but the Asylum Office also accepted requests for this type of protection from citizens of Russia (28), Uzbekistan (6), Armenia (5), Libya (3), China (2), and Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia and Latvia (1 each). Persons granted temporary protection are guaranteed by the Law access to a whole range of economic and social rights – the right to residence, personal documents, the right to education, but also access to the labor market and health care in accordance with the regulations governing the rights of foreigners.

 

A dialogue on national drug strategies

Posted on by Milutin

Following the previous South East Europe government – civil society dialogues on drugs, held in 2018 and 2020, the Drug Policy Network South East Europe organised a very successful Regional round table focused on community-led consultative process on the importance of human rights and evidence-based national drug strategies in HIV response.

The Round table was held in scope of the UNODC-led project for implementation of the “Emergency support for the provision of HIV and Harm Reduction services among key populations in Ukraine and refugees in selected neighbouring countries.” The primary objectives of the project are to ensure the continuity of the HIV prevention, treatment and care (including OAT and ARV) services for people who use drugs/live with HIV, especially community-based care and support for people who use drugs, people living with HIV and other key populations.

The aim of the event was mobilising civil society, service providers, policymakers and other national stakeholders from the Western Balkan region to ensure wide and all-involving drug strategy development process, with the focus on evidence and human rights-based drug strategies which prioritise health-related needs and resources.

The Regional round table was held on 21 February 2023 in Belgrade. The Office for Combating Drugs of the Government of Serbia supported the event ensuring that it is held in the Palace of Serbia.

A record 58 participants came from across of the region, including civil society, service providers, policymakers and other national stakeholders. Representatives of UN Office for Drugs and Crime (UNODC), European Drug Agency (EMCDDA) and The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria joined.

The agenda of the event included presentations of the UNODC project and work around key populations at the global level, the ongoing refugee situation in Serbia and Montenegro, as well as national responses to humanitarian refugee crisis and changing drug situation in countries of the region. In addition, the Round table offered a platform for discussion on with the focus on identifying needs of different stakeholders, especially key affected populations, analysing the national HIV/harm reduction response, key challenges and priorities, the role of the civil society, funding, monitoring, evaluation and impacts assessment.

Presentations from the Regional round table are available following this link>>>.

Bellow is the recording of the Regional round table.

 

Piloting online outreach services

Posted on by Milutin

NGO ReGeneracija held the training “Piloting web outreach services for working with people who use drugs and are at risk of HIV/AIDS, with a special focus on new psychoactive substances, stimulants and recreational drug use” on 20 February 2023. The training was part of the project “Emergency support for the provision of HIV and harm reduction services among key populations in Ukraine and refugees in selected neighboring countries” financed by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).

The training was intended for civil society organizations that would like to start online outreach activities (web outreach) and that work in the field of harm reduction, HIV/AIDS prevention, prevention of various forms of risky behavior, or encounter populations at increased risk in their work.

Topics of the training included the basics of establishing online outreach, as well as concrete steps to make piloting these services easier for everyone and fully adaptable to the needs of the populations one work with, as well as the capacities of implementing organisations. Programme had two components:

  1. Legal framework, challenges and approaches in working with persons at increased risk, local context of the use of new psychoactive substances/stimulants
  2. Piloting online services – where and how to start, ways of communication and access to the community, advantages and challenges of such services, ethics, data collection, monitoring and evaluation.

Web Outreach Consultation Services

Posted on by Milutin

Within the project “Emergency support for the provision of HIV and harm reduction services among key populations in Ukraine and refugees in selected neighbouring countries”, funded by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), our member organisation NGO ReGeneration is providing web outreach services to displaced Ukrainian and Russian citizens in the form of peer consultations and counseling on the topics of harm reduction regarding the use of psychoactive substances, NPS and stimulants in particular, and the risks that potentially accompany their use or related behavioral patterns. We are also providing referral services in terms of voluntary, confidential counseling and testing (VCCT) for HIV, HCV and sexually transmitted infections (STI) in general, as well as consultations and referral services regarding substance use disorders and other possibly necessary health, social or legal services (GBV and such).

The Web outreach services is provided via the Zoom platform, in the form of individual, anonymous and confidential peer consultations, five days per week, in time-slots of 3 hours.

The mode of communication and topics are entirely up to the beneficiaries. The consultations will be provided in English, by English-speaking staff. If any of the potential beneficiaries are not comfortable enough with their English to engage in consultations in this language, we are able to provide consultations in their native language by providing simultaneous interpreting from and into Russian or Ukrainian; however, due to the added logistical steps, it is necessary to schedule consultations in Russian or Ukrainian for specific dates and time slots; these can be scheduled by contacting our organization at: info@regeneracija.org.

To access the Web outreach service, follow this link>>>.

 

Needs assessment

Posted on by Milutin

Our member organisation Re Generation will implement the research study ‘’The needs assessment among Ukrainian refugees and Russian migrants in the Republic of Serbia on access to services and new psychoactive substances/stimulant use’’. The survey is part of the “Emergency support for the provision of HIV and Harm Reduction services among key populations in Ukraine and refugees in selected neighbouring countries” project funded by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).

This research study aims to estimate the level of new psychoactive substances/stimulants used among Ukrainian refugees and Russian migrants as well as understand what the Republic of Serbia should do in the future to ensure that the Ukrainian refugees and Russian migrants have access to services that will improve their social and health status in the humanitarian settings.

If you are a Ukrainian refugee or Russian migrant in the Republic of Serbia, please see the s urvey, more information, and consent form in English here>>>.

Please remember the following:

  • Participation in this research is voluntary, confidential and free,
  • You do not have to decide today whether or not you will participate in the research,
  • Before you decide, you can talk to anyone you feel comfortable with about the research.

 

Project coordination meeting

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Partners in the “Emergency support for the provision of HIV and Harm Reduction services among key populations in Ukraine and refugees in selected neighbouring countries” project held a coordination meeting with the representative of the UNODC Regional Programme Office for Eastern Europe which supports the project. It was an opportunity to present information of the activities implemented since the start of the project in mid-December and additionally clarify some issues related to reporting.

Meeting with the UN agencies

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DPNSEE and partners in the “Emergency support for the provision of HIV and Harm Reduction services among key populations in Ukraine and refugees in selected neighbouring countries” project in Serbia held an online meeting with the representatives of he UN agencies in the country. The aim of the meeting was to present the project and to ensure that it is connected with the work of the agencies.

We expect that the support of the UN system will contribute to establishing good relations and eliminate potential challenges in implementation of the project.

A project for refugee key populations from Ukraine

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The Drug Policy Network South East Europe and its member organisations from Serbia (Prevent, Timočki omladinski centar, Duga, Re Generacija) and Montenegro (Juventas, Cazas) implement the “Emergency support for the provision of HIV and Harm Reduction services among key populations in Ukraine and refugees in selected neighbouring countries” project with the support from the UNODC Regional Programme Office for Eastern Europe.

Primary objectives of the project are:

  • Ensuring the continuity of the HIV prevention, treatment and care (including OAT and ARV) services for people who use drugs/living with HIV
  • Community-based care and support for people who use drugs, people living with HIV, people in prisons
  • Provision of essential requirements, including food and medicines and shelters, in coordination with the penitentiary service/local CSOs

Our organisations will implement the following activities:

  • Provide access to information about health services and drugs and ensure clear, reliable and trustworthy health information reaches refugees
  • Support in accessing health care in host country
  • Rapid provision/purchasing of basic products for existing key populations/refugee shelters/centers
  • Provision of HIV harm reduction services for key populations (including refugees)
  • HIV and harm reduction services for people who use drugs, including new psychoactive substances
  • Mobilising civil society, service providers, policymakers and other national stakeholders from the Western Balkan region to ensure wide and all-involving drug strategy development process
  • Increased awareness and understanding regarding comprehensive gender-sensitive HIV services for women who use drugs (WUD) among health care managers, service providers and decision-makers

This project will be conducted in UNODC partnership with the local CSOs and aims to strengthen the capacity of CSOs to address HIV prevention, treatment, care and support among people who use drugs (including those who use NPS/stimulants) internally displaced populations, refugees and prison populations.

Project findings will inform the development and implementation of evidence-based, gender-responsive and sustainable HIV and harm reduction services for people who used drugs/people in and released from prisons, and IDPs/refugees in Ukraine, Moldova, Serbia and Montenegro.

Civil society statement on ensuring continuity of essential life-saving treatments for Ukrainians in European countries

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The Eurasian Harm Reduction Association (EHRA) initiated the Civil society statement on ensuring continuity of essential life-saving treatments for Ukrainians in European countries. The statement signed by 29 civil society organizations and networks, including DPNSEE.

The undersigned organisations, working with and representing the interests of communities of people living with and affected by HIV, tuberculosis, viral hepatitis and drug dependence in Central and Eastern European countries, call for the following urgent measures:

  • Organise medical data exchange with a particular focus on HIV and opioid dependence to ensure continuity of services between Ukraine and EU member states and among the EU member states;
  • As good clinical practice, ensure that previous diagnosis are accepted, people are prescribed the same regimens and take-home dosages of OAT as in Ukraine as much as possible;
  • To promote and follow the recommendations being set in the Standardized Protocol for clinical management and Medical Data-Sharing for people living with HIV among refugees from Ukraine[1] and to collaborate with WHO on the development of a similar protocol for the refugees from the Ukraine who are OAT patients
  • Support EU member states with emergency procurement and exchange of medications, as needed, to ensure methadone (tables), buprenorphine, dolutegravir-based antiretroviral therapy, pediatric antiretroviral medications and similar Ukraine-prevalent treatments are made available for continuation in all border and other neighbouring countries;
  • Establish a pool of translation support for clinicians and Ukrainian refugees and utilise automated translation services to overcome barriers in refugee services and clinical settings;
  • Support outreach and contacts by HIV and drug treatment experts and NGOs in refugee centres, including the sensitisation of staff and to urgently identify people in need of uninterrupted daily treatment;
  • Introduce simplified initiation of essential treatment to all Ukrainians with or without refugee status based on their passport data; and,
  • Ensure that monitoring systems and hotlines are available to clinicians and other service providers to immediately solve the health issues affecting Ukrainian refugees.

The Statement was sent to high level EU officials and authorities of France (currently holding EU Presidency), Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania.

To read full Statement, follow this link>>>.