The UN refugee agency UNHCR and the Stellar Development Foundation have created a blockchain payment solution to send money to people affected by the war in Ukraine.
Stellar, a decentralized, open-source network designed to send transactions at high speed, will help the United Nations (UN) distribute economic aid to Ukrainians quickly, safely and reliably.
In a statement, the Stellar Development Foundation, the organization responsible for supporting the development of the Stellar network, announced the launch of a new payment solution based on blockchain technology, which will make it easier for the international agency to send money to people in need in Ukraine.
This is the first blockchain payment solution of its kind developed to distribute money to refugees, the Stellar Foundation noted.
Although the payment solution is still in the pilot phase, the UN refugee agency is already sending aid to eligible people in the country. UNHCR is using the USDC stablecoin, pegged to the value of the US dollar, to distribute the financial aid. Ukrainians, meanwhile, are receiving payments from the international agency using the Vibrant wallet, which runs on the Stellat blockchain and allows its users to convert fiat money to cryptocurrencies and vice versa.
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Blockchain technology ensures transparent distribution of humanitarian funds
The UN’s blockchain payments pilot project is being implemented in the cities of Kyiv, Lviv and Vinnytsia, three of the country’s largest and most populous cities, which have been the main destinations for people and families affected by Russia’s war against Ukraine. There, the UN is choosing the most vulnerable citizens to provide them with financial aid through Stellar, in order to cover their basic needs.
Stellar Development Foundation CEO and Executive Director Denelle Dixon highlighted that the Stellar network is helping organizations get funds into the hands of those in need quickly, transparently, and without the need to use bank accounts or cards.
“We are proud to work with UNHCR to implement blockchain innovations that will play an important role in assisting those in crisis”, he pointed Dixon
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s Deputy Minister for Digital Transformation Oleksandr Bornyakov highlighted the benefits that blockchain technology is offering to scale humanitarian efforts and help organizations become more transparent and accountable.
“Humanitarian efforts around the world will be strengthened in an unprecedented way”, Bornyakov said, referring to the potential of blockchain technology to completely revolutionize the way financial aid is allocated to those in need.
It should be noted that at the moment, the blockchain payment solution developed by Stellar is available only in Ukraine, although the foundation has left open the possibility of extending it to other countries in the world in the future.
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Main image from Pixabay
