The conflict in Ukraine has had a devastating toll on the lives and wellbeing of the country’s 43,192,122 population. As the military invasion of Ukraine has unfolded, a humanitarian crisis has developed that has forced civilians to flee their homes or take refuge in bomb shelters, basements and subway stations throughout the country. Many Ukrainians are relying on humanitarian assistance to meet their most basic needs.
“Given that our core purpose at Uniphar is healthcare, and given our extensive operations, we are in a unique position to step up and support Ukrainians in their hour of need. We are asking our large network of pharmacies, suppliers, manufacturers and customers, as well as our own Uniphar team, to help,” says Ger Rabbette, CEO of Uniphar Group
We are doing this in two ways, firstly by sourcing medicines and medical supplies through our business contacts and, secondly, by raising cash for UNICEF’s humanitarian work in the Ukraine and neighbouring countries.
How’s it going so far?
“We are already seeing a great response to our appeal from our customers and partners, with significant pledges of medicines and other medical supplies that the Ukranian government has specifically requested, as well as a major donation of much needed PPE. We hope to be able to send a 40ft truck to the Ukraine border towards the end of this week,” says Dermot Ryan, MD of Uniphar Supply Chain & Retail division.
In addition, Uniphar has set up a JustGiving page to allow employees and other partners and friends to contribute. The money donated to the JustGiving page (www.justgiving.com/fundraising/unity-for-ukraine) goes to direct to UNICEF. We are transferring any donations from our community pharmacy customers to this initiative, with their permission. Uniphar will be matching all donations to this page, from employees or other sources euro for euro to €100,000.
What are we doing this week?
- Our retail pharmacies (Allcare, Hickey’s, Life) have started a big push in recent days, asking every customer to round up their purchase or donate €2 to take part in a raffle.All funds raised in our pharmacies will be transferred to the JustGiving.com page total for UNICEF over the coming days.
- We’re designating next Friday, 1st April as Unity for Ukraine Day right across the Uniphar Group. We are asking all colleagues to wear the Ukrainian national colours of blue and yellow on the day and donate €2 to Unity for Ukraine – all funds raised will be matched by Uniphar.
Sadly, the humanitarian need in Ukraine is growing every day. We’re so grateful to all our customers, partners and colleagues who’ve already donated. If you’d like to join our efforts and get your team or business involved, get in contact with us at UnityforUkraine@uniphar.ie . Every euro helps.
For further information please contact:
Aine Devlin, Brand & Trade Marketing Manager adevlin@rproctoruniphar-ie
