Moldova: Support for Olena and her sons in their integration process

In late 2022, four international NGOs – Acted, IMPACT Initiatives, People in Need and the Norwegian Refugee Council – decided to join forces to help Ukrainian refugees and local vulnerable communities cope with the aftermath of the war in Ukraine. This led to the creation of the PLACE Consortium. As a member of the PLACE Consortium, Acted provides Cash for Rent assistance to meet the urgent housing needs of refugees and vulnerable Moldovan households. Furthermore, in response to the energy crisis in Moldova, additional financial assistance was provided during the 2024-2025 winter period to cover electricity and heating costs.  This support is made possible by the European Union’s humanitarian aid.

Olena was born and raised in the Donetsk region, in the most eastern part of Ukraine. There, she met her husband, had her children and lived a peaceful life. Everything changed in 2014, when war broke out in Donbas and her hometown fall under the control of the separatist military forces. As it was no longer safe to stay there, Olena and her family moved to Volnovakha, another small town on the border in the occupied part of the region.

They remained there until early 2022, up until the start of the full-scale war. A few days after the beginning of the Russian invasion, the fighting reached town and Olena moved with her family to a village a few kilometres away. The situation they found there was no better, Olena realised that it was no longer safe to stay in the country and decided to leave with her children to Moldova.

Not long after they left, the town of Volnovakha was captured by the Russian army and completely destroyed.

After a long journey across Ukraine, the family ended up in northern Moldova, where they met volunteers at the border assisting them to reach Chisinau. The family were hosted by distant relatives for one day before moving to the Transnistrian region to stay at Olena’s aunt. But even there the situation remained tense. After a year and a half, Olena and her children moved back to Chisinau because of a lack of work.

Life began to improve in the capital – Olena found a part-time job as an accountant in a Ukrainian company operating in Moldova. She had tried to enter in Moldovan companies, but the language barrier and lack of knowledge of local accounting peculiarities stopped her in her tracks.

As of today, Olena’s children having a hard time in their adaptation process. The boys have changed schools five times during the relocations.  This makes it difficult for them to adapt, bond with other children and make friends. One of her sons was bullied at school, so she switched him to online homeschooling.

In Chisinau, the family found shelter in a private building that rents rooms to Ukrainian refugees. After entering there, Olena started stressing how important it is for her to be close to the Ukrainian community, particularly because of the support they provide to each other.

Last year, Acted supported her family with Cash for Rent assistance, which covered their accommodation for six months. In addition, this winter, the organisation provided financial support to cover winter heating and electricity bills, which have risen significantly in the country due to the energy crisis. This was made possible by financial support from the European Union’s Humanitarian Aid.

*Her name has been changed to protect her identity.