UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador visits Moldova

Chisinau, March 25 / MOLDPRES /- One month since the start of the war in Ukraine, UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador Orlando Bloom has visited Moldova to meet children and families fleeing Ukraine as refugees.

During the two-day trip, Bloom visited a UNICEF-supported “Blue Dot” space in Palanca, south-west Moldova, where women and children stop for rest and support as they cross the border from Ukraine in search of safety.

“I met one mother as she arrived at the border crossing with her three young children. She told me they had fled Ukraine last night after their neighbour’s house was bombed and they were too scared to stay,“ said Bloom. “It was heartbreaking to see this family and so many others stream through the border after long journeys, with only a few belongings, and not knowing where their journey will end.”

During the trip, Bloom also met children and families at Moldexpo refugee centre in Chișinău, one of more than 100 centres in Moldova where refugees can sleep, access medical and legal information, and have hot meals before continuing their journey.

UNICEF and UNHCR, in partnership with governments and civil society organizations, have set up three “Blue Dots” in Moldova on key refugee routes. The one-stop safe spaces provide information to traveling families, help to identify unaccompanied and separated children and ensure their protection from exploitation, and are a hub for essential services.  

Since the start of the war on 24th February, more than 1.8 million children have fled Ukraine, with tens of thousands crossing into Moldova. Many refugees continue their journey to other countries, while almost 100,000 – half of them children – have stayed in Moldova with host families, volunteers or at government-run refugee centres.

photo: UNICEF