Connecting refugees fleeing the war in Ukraine

Next week will mark the fourth year of the conflict in Ukraine. Millions of people have been affected by the war; many were forced to flee, particularly women, children and elderly people. 6.9 million of refugees from Ukraine have been recorded globally, and 3.7 million are displaced internally. Among these staggering numbers, we have met people in the past four years, in buses to Romania, in shelters – and they have shared their stories with us.

TSF responded to people’s needs as they evolved. In the first weeks of the conflict, thousands took buses to Romania in search of safety; there, we met a family who was living without water or electricity due to bombings. "Without electricity it was hard, but it was still OK," they told us, "but as soon as the water was gone, it became very complicated.” After the bombings, their child kept waking up in panic for weeks, solidifying their decision to leave, try and find peace. In these buses, TSF provided connectivity, enabling people to reach out to their loved ones, find relief during their long trip, and plan for the rest of their journey.  

A few months after, in the heart of a massive population displacement, people were lost, stressed, and deciding the next steps of the journey meant having to shift through countless information, some fake, some dangerous. TSF shared essential information for displaced people in temporary centers; for Hanna, head of one of these centers, the information was “very helpful”, with practical information on health, education, social support and more. This response ended in 2024; most of the people displaced by the war were now either in other countries, or living in different accommodations, like shelters.

All throughout this response, we have worked with shelters. We ensured that people in these shelters could access the Internet for free.  Over four years of the project, we have equipped and continue to support 26 collective centers in 7 regions. During this time, 24 thousand unique devices have used the free internet access. 

Across these shelters, we have met many displaced persons, like Sergei. Sergei is in middle-school. He, his mother and his siblings arrived on an evacuation bus, and used phones to follow classes when it was fully online. “I do my homework, write and submit it, and study online.”. Others work online, or find relief in finding entertainment when there is nothing else to do. We met Anastasia, who uses the Internet for entertainment when she isn’t working. Her house was bombed, back in 2023, and she now lives in the dormitory: “there is nothing left of our house,” she told us. “A shell hit it and it burned down, right in front of my dad's eyes”. For Vira, 74 years old, whose son is fighting in the war, communication with loved ones and information is essential: “I look [for information online] because we really want the war to end. I wake up right away, I need to know how the children are doing, [they] call me.” 

This free Internet access has had a concrete impact for Sergei, Anastasia, Vira, and thousands of other people living in a country at war. Even though this response is continuing, this report is the final report for this project. We want to thank you sincerely for your support.