Polish aid

On 4 May, a meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council in the format of development cooperation ministers (FAC Development) was held in Brussels. The most important items on the agenda included the global consequences of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, the reform of multilateral development banks, and support for Ukraine.

Poland and the UK will build two major temporary villages in the west and east of Ukraine to provide vital housing to those forced from their homes by barbaric Russian attacks. The UK has announced up to £10 million in funding to support the new Polish-UK partnership, which will deliver temporary shelters, energy supplies and assistance to those who have lost their homes since the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Since 2004, on the initiative of the MFA, opinions polls have been carried out to asses Poles’ knowledge about development assistance and our society’s readiness to provide such help. In December 2022, Kantar Public (Mantle Polska sp. z o.o.) conducted an opinion poll titled “Poles on development assistance” which included a set of questions about the respondents’ attitude towards assistance to war-affected Ukraine.

Moldova has been one of Polish Aid's priority countries for years. Russia's invasion of neighbouring Ukraine has increased the importance of development assistance for this country. Polish companies, research and development institutes and universities support Moldova through projects carried out in cooperation with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Because of the persistent COVID-19 pandemic in Syria and in response to the appeal of the World Health Organization (WHO) Office in Damascus, Poland donated medical equipment (i.e. oxygen cylinders, respirators and medical beds) and medicines to fight COVID-19 to be used by the Syrian health service.

As a gesture of solidarity in the face of vaccine shortages and risks posed by new coronavirus variants, Poland will hand over 400,000 AstraZeneca vaccine doses to Taiwan.

Poland is allocating PLN 1 million in response to the UNRWA Gaza Emergency Appeal.

Due to an ongoing crisis caused by illegal migrants flowing from the territory of Belarus to the Lithuanian border for the past few months, Poland decided to send convoys carrying humanitarian aid. This is a sign of solidarity and support for our neighbour and ally.