Over the coming months, hundreds of thousands of refugees and displaced families will face sub-zero temperatures. We are on the ground distributing life-saving aid to help families survive the freezing cold winter months.
Stoves and fuel
to cook meals, generate heat and dry wet clothing
Emergency shelter
to protect a family from the harsh elements
Emergency cash payments
to help families buy what they need most
Refugees aren’t headlines.
Refugees are loving parents, brothers and sisters, cousins, neighbours and friends. Refugees are people with histories, with families, memories, hopes and fears.
As many refugees and displaced families face a brutal winter far from home, we are asking you to remember the people behind the headlines…
Over the coming weeks, in places like Afghanistan, Syria, Lebanon and Jordan temperatures are expected to plummet below zero. Many displaced families are living in camps, informal settlements and dilapidated buildings, with little protection from the freezing temperatures, rain and snow.
UNHCR is on the ground providing vital winter essentials such as warm clothes, shelter, thermal blankets, fuel and emergency winter payments to ensure families can buy what they need most. But we urgently need your help.
Please donate today to help displaced families survive.
How does winter impact the lives of refugees and displaced people?
This winter, cold weather will sweep across countries in the Middle East and beyond, leaving millions of refugees at risk. For some, this will be the 11th consecutive winter in displacement.
How many are vulnerable to harsh winter conditions?
As temperatures drop, millions of families forced to flee will face another brutal winter far from home. In the Middle East, 10 million face extreme weather conditions, while 3.3 million need help to survive this winter.
What about winter in Afghanistan?
With widespread forced displacement, natural disasters, and over 40 years of conflict, Afghanistan remains one of the most complex humanitarian situations in the world.
The situation has challenged the resilience of the Afghan people, for whom it is difficult to meet their basic needs and their vulnerability is further exacerbated by the harsh winter conditions in Afghanistan where monthly temperatures can reach as low as -12 degrees centigrade.
Vulnerable displaced families whose makeshift shelters do not protect against the cold and who do not have the means to purchase fuel and heaters, need life-saving winter assistance.
What is UNHCR doing to help?
UNHCR is on the ground providing vital winter essentials such as warm clothes, shelters, thermal blankets, fuel and stoves to cook hot food and emergency winter payments.
UNHCR’s winter assistance is focused on helping families survive in harsh conditions, often in precarious and temporary shelters.
Critical needs for core assistance items during winter include blankets, solar lanterns, tent insulation kits and cash for heating and clothing.
In cold climates, with temperatures below freezing, people can die within a day without adequate protection from the elements. For those most at risk, survival is often dependent on prioritizing the distribution of blankets, thus allowing them to stay warm
How can I help?
There are many ways you can take action to help displaced families face the harsh winter to come. You can hold a fundraiser, make a direct donation or simply share this page with friends and family!