NGO Girls, AUCO "Convictus Ukraine," and NGO Association of Roma Women "Voice of Romni" have established the first women-led Consortium — WONA.
WONA (Women's Organizations National Alliance) is a national consortium of Ukrainian women-led organizations focused on protecting rights, ensuring safety, and supporting the recovery of people and communities.
Implementation period: August 1, 2026 — July 31, 2028.
Oblasts covered by the Consortium: Dnipropetrovsk, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Mykolaiv, Kherson, Chernihiv, Kyiv city and Kyiv oblast, Ivano-Frankivsk, Chernivtsi, and Zakarpattia.
Mission. To unite the capacities and experience of Ukrainian women's organizations to deliver accessible, high-quality, and accountable humanitarian assistance, strengthen protection from violence, and support people's long-term recovery, resilience, and self-reliance.
Vision. WONA is an example of the localization of humanitarian response, where Ukrainian organizations independently set priorities, manage resources, and are accountable for results.
Overall goal. Vulnerable women and girls, as well as men and boys affected by the war, in 10 oblasts of Ukraine become safer and gain better access to the services they need and to the realization of their rights.
Target Audience.
The main audience of the Consortium's programs is women and girls affected by war, displacement, or violence, or who are in high-risk zones.
Depending on the needs and content of specific programs, assistance may also be provided to: men and boys, children and adolescents, families, internally displaced persons, people with disabilities, members of national communities, and other high-risk groups.
A focus on women and girls does not mean excluding other people who need support.
Areas of Work.
The Consortium's work is built around three major pillars of support — from crisis response to long-term recovery.
1. Protection from Gender-Based Violence.
The Consortium's partners provide a comprehensive response to cases of gender-based violence, including case management, psychological support, legal aid, financial assistance, and dignity kits for survivors, as well as referrals to other necessary services.
In parallel, prevention work continues: awareness-raising and preventive activities, including within Roma communities, engaging men and boys in violence-prevention programs, and supporting the leadership of Roma women.
A separate area of work is capacity building: training frontline responders who work with survivors, and advocating for change at the regional and national levels, including in the context of the Roma Strategy 2030 and the Istanbul Convention.
2. Health and Psychosocial Support. The Consortium provides access to individual and group psychological and psychiatric support, mental health case management, awareness-raising work on sexual and reproductive health, and hygiene kits for girls and boys.
3. Economic Empowerment. To support people's long-term resilience, the Consortium develops its economic empowerment work: career counseling, retraining, support for self-employment and start-up kits, as well as counseling on financial literacy and legal safety.
All areas of work are carried out through the joint efforts of the Consortium's partners, drawing on each organization's expertise.
The Consortium views assistance as a continuous pathway:
Prevention → Response → Stabilization → Self-reliance
Assistance should not end with a short-term response to a crisis. It must create the conditions for recovery, greater safety, and long-term resilience.
Values.
People-centeredness: people's needs, safety, dignity, and rights are the foundation of every decision.
Equality: we recognize people's diverse experiences and work to eliminate discrimination and unequal access to assistance.
Local leadership: decisions must be made with the participation of those who know the context and needs of their communities.
Partnership: we build cooperation based on equality, trust, and shared responsibility.
Accountability: we openly explain our decisions, manage resources responsibly, and respond to feedback.
Safety: we adhere to the "do no harm" principle and protect people's confidentiality.
Localization means not only implementing activities, but also having access to resources, authority, and the right to make decisions.
This project is implemented within the WONA Consortium in partnership with NGO Girls, NGO Association of Roma Women 'Voice of Romni', and AUCO "Convictus Ukraine, with the support of the German Federal Foreign Office.
