Bălți: Sports event supporting inclusion of Ukrainian refugee children
Students from Moldova and Ukraine collaborated in a sports competition held in Balti. Participants reported that the event successfully achieved its goal of promoting the inclusion of refugee children from the war-torn country.
Ilya is 11 years old and comes from Kherson, a city in southeastern Ukraine that has faced constant bombing by Russian forces. He and his parents moved to Balti, where they are starting anew.
“When I arrived, I didn’t know anything about this country. I would ask my mother about different things, and gradually, I discovered more about it. I can go out on my own, I know the city center, and I've learned a little Romanian. I like it here; this is my city, and I have close friends now.”
However, the language barrier remains a challenge, making it particularly difficult for teenagers to make friends in a new country, according to experts. To assist them, several public associations and international organizations have decided to organize a sports competition in Balti.
“Today is Sports Day at our school, and I expect a positive atmosphere. I hope all the participants will be engaged.”
“I have wonderful feelings about today, and I hope it will be successful and filled with beautiful memories. I hope we will play well, and I believe that all the teams will perform excellently.”
“This event is part of a larger project we are organizing with the support of UNICEF Moldova. The project, titled ‘Every child is protected in Moldova,’ aims to build connections between Ukrainians who have come here as refugees because of the Russian invasion and the local communities,” says Roman Rusu, a representative of the National Congress of Ukrainians in the Republic of Moldova.
“Our goal is for every child, regardless of their country of origin or the language they speak, to feel included in the country they currently reside in,” emphasizes Cristina Stratulat, program officer at UNICEF Moldova.
At the end of last year, the Republic of Moldova was home to around 118,000 refugees, primarily women and children. Millions of Ukrainians have fled their country due to the war, with 90 percent of them settling in European nations.
