UNHCR awarded for innovative crypto program aiding Ukrainian refugees

Paris Blockchain Week awarded the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) for its innovative approach to using cryptocurrency to assist internally displaced Ukrainian refugees.

UNHCR uses crypto to aid internally displaced Ukrainians

According to Trustnodes, the UNHCR, the UN’s refugee agency, has been awarded for using crypto to help displaced refugees in Ukraine.

The program provides qualified users with direct cash payments in USDc. The scheme directly distributes cash in USDc to approved aid users who must simply download a wallet called the Vibrant app. 

Refugees can rapidly convert the stablecoin into currency using this wallet’s partnership with MoneyGram to pay for food or rent.

Kelly Clement, the Deputy High Commissioner at UNHCR stressed the need of utilizing technology and adapting solutions to the needs of the most vulnerable and the content where they’ll be implemented.

The report stated that this was the only active project present in Kyiv, Lyiv, and Vinnytsia. However, the project might spread if it becomes successful.

Since 2016, the organization has provided $5 billion in cash aid to 35 million individuals in 100 different countries. In a revolutionary move, it is also treating tokenized dollars as actual currency.

Ukraine has received over $100 million in crypto donations

When the project was first announced in December, Oleksandr Bornyakov, Ukraine’s deputy minister of digital transformation, stated that it might potentially provide a lifeline for persons fleeing Ukraine, particularly those whose banks are out of reach.

Since February 2022, Ukraine has received over $100 million in cryptocurrency donations. However, the majority of the donations were made in ethereum. 

This is the first instance of a government using cryptocurrency in this way, and at first, they even announced a token airdrop to donors before canceling it.