Yelyzaveta, IOM Slovakia consultant

I used to be an English teacher before the war, and I lost my job on 24 February. When I arrived in Slovakia, I really felt that I needed to help Ukrainians who could face some problems during their stay in a new country.

I am attached to everything that is happening in Ukraine at this moment. I started to search for different opportunities and one of them was IOM. There was an announcement about joining the Emergency Response Team and I decided to apply for this position because I am a native speaker of the languages that are necessary for delivering information.

People have different problems in the new country. Working in the field can be difficult, but I am really pleased to see smiles of people who I managed to assist. One of the most significant resources is information that they can obtain through legal counselling by IOM.

I provide information about temporary refuge in Slovakia and its conditions. I try to reach out as many people as possible in order to ask questions regarding their issues as they can feel shy.

This help is really important, because people are confused with this special temporary refuge status, and they don't know exactly if they are able to come back to Ukraine when they are registered at the police. It is one of the most frequent questions that I come across in the field.

If you have enough information, it means that you can take action to improve your life. I am here because Ukrainians need to have access to this information.

This view presented herein do not necessarily represent the opinions of the International Organization for Migration (IOM).