Since early 2024, more than 500 people displaced from Donbass and Ukraine completed vocational training courses under the Russian Red Cross project. Some were learning new skills while others enrolled to enhance existing competencies. In addition, a new business enterprise facilitation project was launched in 2025 for the benefit of refugees and displaced persons, who can claim up to 120,000 rubles in startup assistance. Since the project’s outset, 100 requests have been filed, and more than half of the applicants have received their grants.
“As people first arrived at their new place of residence they had just basic needs. But very soon we found that humanitarian relief alone is not enough. What people really needed was not just to survive but to recover and rebuild their lives. It means that assistance has to be flexible to be effective. Starting from the basics, it must evolve to be relevant to people’s life circumstances. Assistance with vocational training and business initiatives exemplify such adaptive approach,” said Pavel Savchuk, President of the Russian Red Cross.
Post-resettlement vocational training under the Russian Red Cross project is an option available to evacuees and refugees from Donbass and Ukraine who were displaced from their homes since February, 2022. An applicant can choose the relevant and properly licensed training institution and the preferred trade or profession in areas from beauty industry to finance. The only two limits are course duration (up to 3 months) and cost (up to 60,000 rubles). The Russian Red Cross reviews each request on a case by case basis taking into consideration the applicant’s specific circumstances and needs.
Also in 2025, the business enterprise facilitation program entered the implementation phase with the purpose to assist those who find themselves in a new life situation in setting up businesses for a sustainable livelihood. Grants can be spent on equipment purchase, rents, materials and inventory procurement, marketing, and other reasonable expenses relevant to implementation of the business idea. All applications are evaluated by a specially created commission, with special focus on feasibility and sustainability of business projects. Grant approval implies follow-up monitoring of business activity, both remotely (by collecting photo and video evidence) and offline, after 4 and after 8 months.
Notably, many program participants end up joining the Russian Red Cross as staff or volunteers, and continue helping those in need, by way of direct assistance as well as by applying their newly acquired skills.
Both projects are being implemented under the Russian Red Cross program with support from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC).
