Charles Darwin University has launched a new scholarship fund for Ukrainian refugees affected by the recent armed tensions with Russia as part of a fundraising program to help provide assistance in the wake of the humanitarian crisis.

CDU said the new scholarship fund for Ukrainian refugees is the first for the higher education sector in Australia.

“The CDU Ukrainian Assistance Scholarship will support Ukrainian humanitarian entrants to Australia, offering education scholarships to support their tuition fees, books and living expenses,” the university said in a statement.

CDU said it will be launching a staff fundraising campaign where the university will match dollar-for-dollar the amount raised from staff.

The fundraiser will also be open to business, government and the wider community in the Northern Territory, Australia and internationally, for anyone looking to support a student’s education, CDU said.

CDU Vice-Chancellor Scott Bowman said the university stands ready to support the people of Ukraine and their families and friends in Australia by providing subsidised education pathways.

“The new scholarship fund will be a show of support for the people of Ukraine, to do what we can as a university and from Territorians,” Professor Bowman said.

“This is just one small thing we can do as an educational institution to offer Ukrainian humanitarian entrants some tuition and financial support in the aftermath of the hardship and loss they are experiencing.”

CDU Global Director Joanne Chrystal also said the uni wants to help as many impacted Ukrainians as possible.

She said it wants to ensure students are supported with their tuition fees and other expenses as they study in the Northern Territory.

Ukrainian students will also be supported with access to counselling and a dedicated International Student Support team, she added.

The university said any money raised that is not used will be redirected and delivered back to humanitarian efforts in Ukraine.

More than half a million Ukrainians have already fled country, with millions more expected

As of Monday, more than half a million people had fled Ukraine since Russian forces invaded the country, according to the United Nations.

The latest and still growing count had 281,000 people entering Poland, more than 84,500 in Hungary, about 36,400 in Moldova, over 32,500 in Romania and about 30,000 in Slovakia, the United Nations’ refugee agency (UNHCR) said.

The rest were scattered in unidentified other countries.

Ukraine’s health ministry said on Sunday that 352 civilians, including 14 children have been killed since the start of Russia’s invasion. It also said 1,684 people, including 116 children, have been wounded.

It is unclear how many Ukrainian and Russian soldiers have died in total so far.

The Australian Federal Government has committed $50 million to provide both lethal and non-lethal defensive support for Ukraine through NATO, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said.

“The overwhelming majority of that … will be in the lethal category,” he said.

“We’re talking missiles, we’re talking ammunition, we’re talking supporting them in their defense of their own homeland in Ukraine and we’ll be doing that in partnership with NATO,” he said.

You can donate to the Ukrainian Assistance Scholarship Appeal fund sponsored by CDU here: https://www.cdu.edu.au/alumni-giving/giving/ukrainian-assistance-scholarship-appeal