UNHCR Launches Blockchain Payment Solution For Displaced Ukrainians

UNHCR Launches Blockchain Payment Solution For Displaced Ukrainians

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has launched a blockchain payment solution for digital cash distribution to internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Ukraine. The blockchain-based cash distribution system ensures the funds are instantly transferred to the intended recipients, according to the agency.

The ‘Most Impacted and Vulnerable People’ Qualify

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the Stellar Development Foundation (SDF), an organization supporting the growth of the Stellar blockchain, announced on December 15 the launch of a "blockchain payment solution for digital cash distribution to internally displaced persons (IDPs) and other war-affected people in Ukraine."

The agency released a statement saying that, alongside the United Nations International Computing Centre (UNICC), it is the first "to pilot the new Stellar-based aid disbursement solution." The UNHCR said the pilot phase is specifically for Ukraine, and the system ensures the funds reach the intended beneficiaries.

All eligible Ukrainians are set to receive the donated funds in the USDC stablecoin. Recipients can either choose to store the funds in their Vibrant wallet or cash out at any global Moneygram outlet. Recipients have the option to use "over 4,500 Moneygram outlets in Ukraine."

While there are plans to eventually expand the program to include more Ukrainian towns, the statement has named only three cities—Kyiv, Lviv, and Vinnytsia as currently participating. The expected beneficiaries of the pilot phase include "people most impacted and vulnerable due to the war."

Pilot Program Likely to ‘Strengthen Humanitarian Efforts’

Commenting on the agency’s pilot cash distribution program, Karolina Lindholm Billing, the UNHCR’s representative in Ukraine, said:

"Ukraine is a global leader in the development of technical solutions to increase access to social protection, including assistance for displaced people. The UNHCR has been collaborating across the world for years. The technology sector has played a crucial role in helping to innovate and deliver faster, as speed is of the essence in humanitarian action. It’s also essential to provide people with a range of options for receiving aid, as one size does not fit all."

Denelle Dixon, the CEO and executive director of SDF said the partnership between her organization and the UNHCR has pioneered "a new future for the delivery of billions of dollars in aid disbursed annually." Oleksandr Bornyakov, the Ukrainian deputy minister of digital transformation, claimed that the pilot program is likely to strengthen "humanitarian efforts around the world."

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