AN OVERVIEW OF KIWI K.A.R.E’s WORK IN UKRAINE 2023
KIWI K.A.R.E IN ACTION JUNE TO DECEMBER 2023 SUMMARY
This period has seen a significant increase in Kiwi K.A.R.E logistical capability and geographical reach, with the addition of the 12-tonne truck and a dedicated ambulance as part of our Outreach Programme to augment the existing vehicles, and with the establishment of a new partnership with a significant humanitarian hub in Hamburg, Germany. We have further consolidated our relationship with key partner, registered Ukrainian NGO, Day-by-Day Foundation, whose deep seated and wideranging connections have been very beneficial. We now operate as oneteam in respect of humanitarian and medical aid sourcing, mission planning and execution, and vehicle repairs and maintenance. Consequently, the operational tempo has increased as have costs in respect of fuel consumption and vehicle maintenance. While our focus clearly remains on operational and timely support to frontline medical units and Internally Displaced Persons (IDP’s), we are also engaging with, and supporting where possible, a range of future-facing initiatives as detailed below.
However, Kiwi K.A.R.E is not financially geared to fund some of the projects we are being asked to support, nor is the operational tempo at our current level sustainable if we continue to rely solely on the Givealittle, crowdfunding site, as our singular source of funding. We are in discussions with a large U.S. based humanitarian funder Direct Relief (www.directrelief.org) which, if successful, will enable Kiwi K.A.R.E to move the dial positively for those Ukrainians most in need. Securing strategic and sustainable funding will remain an ongoing key focus. Kiwi K.A.R.E has also developed positive relationships with government ministers, ambassadors and senior officials, and military commanders. This has enabled a deeper understanding of their wider humanitarian needs and has resulted in specific requests for support particularly around the supply of medical aid, stoves and water boilers, and ambulances. To deliver on this we will need strategic funding.
OUR WORK IN UKRAINE
KIWI K.A.R.E LOGISTICS
In June, a low kilometre, 12 tonne box truck, was identified in Kraków, Poland, and, following a positive mechanical report, Kiwi K.A.R.E purchased the vehicle. The truck was immediately driven to Hamburg, to our partner humanitarian hub, to collect much needed humanitarian and medical aid for Kherson following the destruction of the Nova Kakhovka Dam. The aid was distributed within one week. As a side note, the destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam was wholly unnecessary. It had zero military compulsion or impact (it didn’t remotely thwart the AFU advance at that time), and the humanitarian and environmental impact was, and remains, very significant. The Kakhovka reservoir played a crucial role in providing energy, drinking water, irrigation, and river transport to various regions in southern Ukraine, as well as supplying water for industries in Kryvyi Rih, Nikopol, Marhanets, and a range of smaller townships.
The release of over 18 cubic km of water, within a span of 3-4 days, posed significant threat to nearly 80 settlements, affecting circa 100,000 inhabitants directly, while up to one million people lost access to drinking water. The destruction of the dam, beyond these immediate humanitarian needs, will have a significant impact in the longer term on a much larger geographical area and population. It will have severe, long-term impacts on Ukraine's environment, economy and society, including possible displacement and migration of population, and is likely to cast a dark shadow over the country for decades to come. Kiwi K.A.R.E, and many other NGO’s, is constantly asked to assist with the delivery of drinking water and arranging humanitarian and medical aid for Kherson still today.
KIWI K.A.R.E NEW ZEALAND MEDICAL SUPPORT
An epic journey that started in June 2022 with a phone call to New Zealand from beleaguered Kharkiv, ended in August 2023 with seven decommissioned Hato Hone St John ambulances crossing the Polish border into Ukraine. Within four weeks, the ambulances were serviced, repainted, and presented to Ukrainian medical units at a dedication ceremony held in Sophia Square in central Kyiv on 11 September, attended by government officials and senior Officers of the AFU. The ambulances, which left New Zealand on 4 May 2023, travelled some 20,000 kilometres by ship and road from Auckland to Kyiv, and were collected by a combined Ukrainian - New Zealand team from Port Antwerp, Belgium, in early August. While many organisations and people worked tirelessly to ensure this initiative was successful, had it not been for the unwavering support from Hato Hone St John, who donated the ambulances to Kiwi K.A.R.E, and shipping company, Wallenius Wilhelmsen, who moved the ambulances to Europe on a pro bono basis, we would not have prevailed.
Tauranga based Iwi, Ngai Te Rangi, was approached to advise on naming and blessing the ambulances. Following advice, the ambulances were named in Te Reo, reflecting one of the seven key principles of Tanga, or Māori worldview: Rangatira (Leadership); Manaaki (Caring); Kotahi (Unity); Whanau (Family & Relationships); Kaitiaki (Guardianship); Wairua (Spirit); and Tupuna (Ancestry). The names have resonated significantly with the Ukrainians. These warrior vehicles will operate proudly in the service of Ukraine. Kiwi K.A.R.E is retaining one ambulance for our Outreach Programme, as a mobile health unit, to operate in newly liberated areas where many people haven’t seen a doctor or nurse for months and, in some cases, years. A Canadian Registered Nurse ran the Outreach Programme initially, and Manaaki will be her dedicated vehicle while she is in situ (Manaaki, or caring, seemed the most appropriate name for the Kiwi K.A.R.E ambulance).
KIWI K.A.R.E NEW ZEALAND MEDICAL SUPPORT
It is unsurprising that Kiwi K.A.R.E has received requests from the Ukrainian Government for twenty more ambulances ‘of the same quality’. We anticipate this number will grow significantly. The New Zealand ambulances are some of the best vehicles delivered to Ukraine. Having delivered ambulances as part of other teams previously, these seven vehicles are top tier. We are working to source additional ambulances in Australasia, Europe and Asia. We are currently in negotiation with St John Western Australia for the donation of six vehicles and are also in discission with Wallenius Wilhelmsen to ship these units from Port Freemantle.
KIWI K.A.R.E INTERNATIONAL LOGISTICS – MEDICAL AID FROM NEW ZEALAND
On 29 September a Kiwi K.A.R.E team deployed to Przemysl, Poland, and secured the contents of the NZ container of medical aid. During early October, this aid was distribution to front line hospitals and medical units as far south as Kherson. Among the medical aid is an aesthetic machine donated by St Mark’s Hospital in Auckland (this machine accurately mixes anaesthetic gases and vapours and enables patient ventilation), and an oxygen enriching / concentrating machine (this machine concentrates oxygen from a gas supply, typically ambient air, by selectively removing nitrogen to supply an oxygen-enriched air). We are very grateful to the many New Zealanders, comprising doctors, nurses, pharmacists, medical institutions, and private individuals who donated the medical aid that has been distributed within the Red Zone.
KIWI K.A.R.E WOOD BURING STOVES (BURZHUYKAS) AND WATER BOILERS (VODA NAHARIVACH)
Last year Kiwi K.A.R.E and our Ukrainian partners, Day-by-Day Foundation, commissioned the fabrication of 180 wood burning stoves, called burzhuykas, together with larger water boiling units, called voda nahrivach, with capacity to heat 160 litres of water. These units are repurposed from recycled electrical water cylinders, collected from all over Ukraine, stripped down to reveal the core tank which is fabricated into either a stove or water heater of various sizes. All units are manufactured in Kyiv and offer subsistence employment to Ukrainian fabricators. The stoves were so successfully received last year that we have requests for 1500 from both military medical units and various civilian organisations. We anticipate this number will continue to grow. Last year, many went to rear area logistic facilities for soldiers who have been withdrawn from the frontline, and to Internally Displaced Persons (IDP’s) in Red Zone towns and villages whose critical infrastructure has been destroyed by missile, drone and artillery strikes. It is anticipated Russian targeting of infrastructure will happen again this year.
We started manufacturing for the 2023 winter season in October and have capacity to build circa 200 per month on current staffing levels. Increasing production, which would have been preferable ahead of winter, would have had a significant impact on cost viz wages. The cost of a finished burzhuyka, complete with delivery and New Zealand branded nameplate is NZD160 (USD95); voda nahrivach are priced at NZD260 (USD163), essentially comprising two tanks welded together.
If, for example, we were to manufacture 800 stoves and 200 water heaters the cost would be NZD128,000 + NZD54,000 = NZD182,000 (USD110,000). The “With Love From New Zealand” name plates do not add significantly to the cost, and they create a positive New Zealand brand throughout Ukraine given the geographical breadth over which the units are being distributed. It also rightfully acknowledges the significant contribution made by many New Zealanders in support of Ukraine. To date, Kiwi K.A.R.E has funded NZD55,000 (USD34,000) towards fabrication and distribution. However, we are not financially geared to continue funding a project of this magnitude and, to do so, will require strategic funding, i.e. institutional or corporate support.
KIWI K.A.R.E FRONTLINE STABILISATION CENTRES: SHIPPING CONTAINERS AND THE NZLAVs
NZLAVs
SHIPPING CONTAINERS
This video shows our combined team visiting a frontline stabilisation centre in November to ‘prove the evacuation route’.
Kiwi K.A.R.E and, our Ukrainian partners, Day-By-Day Foundation, were asked by a Brigade of the AFU to source good quality shipping containers to dig-in on the frontline to act as protected first-line stabilisation facilities.
The area was under spasmodic artillery fire, and we felt vulnerable in a soft skin vehicle, hence using this opportunity to ask to meet the government to discuss the deployment of the NZ Light Armoured Vehicles (NZLAVs) as armoured ambulances. While the LAVs would not survive a direct hit from 155mm artillery, they offer protection from shrapnel and can ably negotiate rough and boggy terrain in most weather conditions. It is arguable the New Zealand public would support the deployment of the NZLAVs as armoured ambulances, dedicated to life preservation, whereas their use in a more kinetic role, as reconnaissance vehicles or Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs), for example, may not garner such widespread support. We hope to have an opportunity to re-open discussions on this with the Government, having now proved that the evacuation route in a soft skin vehicle (an ambulance) is unnecessarily dangerous.
The evacuation process is challenging at the best of times and, often, surgeons have to operate in situ in an attempt to get within The Golden Hour (the first 60 mins after traumatic injury when emergency treatment is most likely to be successful). Two of our team deployed to Odessa and identified four suitable containers. Kiwi K.A.R.E funded NZD2500 (USD1534) towards the purchase and transportation of the containers which are now insitu on the frontline.
KIWI K.A.R.E YURI BEARS
Kiwi K.A.R.E was approached by Ryman Healthcare (Australia) to distribute to children throughout Ukraine a soft toy knitted by the residents of their New Zealand and Australian residential care facilities. The brief history of this initiative is as follows: ▪ A woman called Debra Richardson who, in 1986 was a Police Officer in, Australia’s, Victoria Police Force, cared for a 12-year-old Ukrainian boy who became a refugee following the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant explosion in April 1986. The boy’s name was Yuri. ▪ Debra, now a senior executive with Ryman Healthcare, was recently rediscovered by her ‘Ukranian son’ Yuri thanks to Facebook and some investigative work. ▪ Yuri, now a LTCOL of Ukrainian Police based in Kyiv, and Debra hatched an elegant plan, requiring the cooperation of Ryman Healthcare residents to do something positive for Internally Displaced Ukrainian children. They decided to knit a soft toy that became known as a Yuri Bear.
▪ Following coordination and management by Kiwi K.A.R.E and Day-byDay Foundation, a container, filled with Yuri Bears, arrived in Kyiv in September and our combined team has been distributing them as part of wider missions carrying humanitarian and medical aid. Pictured are children from Ivankiv, an urban settlement situated on the left bank of the Teteriv River, some 50kms from Chernobyl, close to the city of Pripyat and the site of the disaster, being introduced to Yuri Bears and the story of Yuri, a young boy who lived just up the road during another challenging time in Ukraine’s history.
KIWI K.A.R.E MY NAME IS UKRAINE
Kiwi K.A.R.E has been approached by Sir Richard Taylor (Weta Studios: Lord of The Rings, The Hobbit Chronicles & King Kong) and film producer Scott McJarrow to assist with the planning and management of a documentary called My Name is Ukraine. This emotive story-telling format captures, in 3-4 minute vignettes, the stories of the fallen as voiced by a close family member as if they are the fallen soldier. This documentary will include New Zealanders. As coincidence has it, the Chairman of our Ukrainian partner organisation, Day-by-Day Foundation, has been involved in film and event production events at the highest level. As an example, his company managed the Miley Cyrus tour before the war, and he is a leading location scout who can manage government approvals on this project. Please click on the following link for a quick intro into the filming format. MNIU Short Presentation (3m 30s)
KIWI K.A.R.E UKRAINIAN RUGBY
Two of the Kiwi K.A.R.E Trustees are Sir Graham Henry, KNZM, and Brent Impey. Sir Graham coached the New Zealand national rugby team, The All Blacks, and, as Head Coach, led New Zealand to win the 2011 Rugby World Cup. Brent Impey has had a stellar professional career comprising numerous public company Directorships, including that of Chair of New Zealand Rugby. Consequently, Tenby Powell met with the President of Ukrainian Rugby to discuss support offered by Sir Graham and Brent to assist in positioning the national team at the same level as Georgia Rugby, with whom Ukraine have a close relationship. A zoom call was held between Ukrainian Rugby leadership and Kiwi K.A.R.E Trustees and this remains a work-in-progress. While this sits to the side of Kiwi K.A.R.E capabilities and our core mission, we are delighted to act as a connector in what may be a positive post-war contribution.
KIWI K.A.R.E IN SUMMARY
Kiwi K.A.R.E, together with our partners, Day-By-Day Foundation, is maintaining a high tempo of logistics operations, while supporting a range of positive initiatives aimed at Ukraine’s post war future. Consequently, costs have increased in respect of fuel consumption and vehicle maintenance, while we continue to invest in life preserving assets, i.e., wood burning stoves and water boilers, and shipping containers to digin as first line surgical facilities. Despite an almost total absence of media coverage on the war, it is still very much raging. It is therefore very important to continue humanitarian operations and to maintain a spotlight on the ongoing humanitarian atrocities inflicted on the Ukrainian people. Sustainable operations will ultimately depend on sustainable funding which is yet another project in and of itself. All in all – we have achieved a successful period in support of Ukraine and, as always, we are grateful to the many New Zealanders, and those international groups, who continue to support Kiwi K.A.R.E.
As the saying goes, a picture paints a thousand words. To gain more insight into 6 months of Kiwi K.A.R.E’s work in Ukraine this year, please click here to view our eight-and-a-half-minute summary video.
THANK YOU NEW ZEALAND A huge thank you to all the New Zealanders, and our many overseas supporters, who have donated to Kiwi K.A.R.E and enabled us to positively move the dial for many Ukrainians in need. You’re all amazing humans and we will be forever grateful for your support.
www.kiwikareukraine.co.nz
TO SUPPORT OUR WORK IN UKRAINE GO TO: https://givealittle.co.nz/cause/kiwi-kare-ukraine-kiwi-aid-and-refugee-evacuation
TO DONATE TO PROVIDE VITAL WINTER WARMTH TO UKRAINE GO TO: https://givealittle.co.nz/cause/providing-vital-winter-warmth-to-ukraine
TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT OUR WORK GO TO: www.kiwikareukraine.co.nz