Russia

Overview

Russia is the largest country in the world – spanning more than an eighth of Earth’s land. While the largest nation by area, it has only the ninth largest population, with Jews comprising less than one half of one percent of its 142 million people.

JDC has a long, but interrupted, history in Russia. It mounted relief efforts in the aftermath of the Russian Revolution and established Agro-Joint in cooperation with the Soviet authorities in 1924, but was forced by those same authorities to leave in 1938. Fifty years later, JDC was once again allowed to operate freely in the country and bring its expertise and commitment to the aid of Russia’s Jewish communities.

Need

With the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Jews in Russia found themselves able to practice their faith openly once again and sought to create a vibrant Jewish future. But seven decades of communist prohibitions against Jewish education and practices and the systematic dismantling of communal structures left many communities lacking even basic knowledge of Jewish culture, religion, or community life.

Russia, like much of the former Soviet Union, suffered great economic trials as it emerged as an independent state. The result was not only a lack of knowledge about Jewish life but a lack of resources to begin to rebuild the cornerstones of healthy Jewish communities.

While the economic picture has improved in the last decade, there remains a chasm between the newly emerging middle class and the communities still plagued by poverty and lack of resources. This inequity and resource gap has affected many elderly Jews who continue to live in substandard conditions with pensions that are not adequate for their basic needs.

Response

In the 20 years since re-establishing programs in Russia, JDC has provided significant resources to at-risk Jewish populations, addressing not only immediate material needs but also the need to rebuild Jewish culture and create a vibrant Jewish future. JDC’s efforts include:

• Food cards for the purchase of groceries in local supermarkets
• Support for the healthy growth and development of ill, homebound children through home care services
• A program to integrate children with disabilities into formal and informal educational frameworks

Impact

JDC’s efforts in Russia are as diverse and expansive as the country itself:

• A wide range of welfare programs and services benefit more than 73,000 Jewish elderly annually
• More than 7,800 at-risk children receive assistance each year
• NGO management training, operated in conjunction with Moscow’s prestigious State University Higher School of Economics, reaches Jewish and non-Jewish executives
• YESOD JCC, a vibrant cornerstone of the St. Petersburg Jewish community, organizes a variety of events and ongoing programming for every age and interest
• Nikitskaya JCC in Moscow offers high-quality cultural and educational programming for adults and children, including Tapuz, unique kindergarten programs for ages 1.5 to 5 and school preparation courses for ages 5 to 7

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