Women and children fleeing Ukraine are at a heightened risk of falling into the hands of human traffickers who are exploiting the chaos and anonymity resulting from mass displacements and humanitarian crises, Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor warned in a statement March 29.

More than 3.8 million people have fled Ukraine since Russia's invasion a month ago, UN figures showed March 27, but the flow of refugees has slowed down markedly. The UN refugee agency, UNHCR, said 3,821,049 Ukrainians had fled the country -- an increase of 48,450 from Saturday's figures. Around 90 percent of them are women and children, it added.

The Minister of Social Policy of Ukraine Maryna Lazebna said that today a formal proposal had been sent to 23 countries through diplomatic channels to conclude bilateral memoranda on protection of the rights of displaced children from vulnerable categories and a draft memorandum as well.

One month into the war in Ukraine, millions of people, mainly women and children, continue to flee their homes. As long as the conflict continues, the risk of them being targeted by criminal networks grows.

In this press release the UN Child Rights Committee asked States to provide core and integrated support to traumatised Ukrainian children, especially those who are unaccompanied.

Conflict-related traumas can trigger "elevations in heart rate, breathing and stress hormones related to the fight or flight response. Repeat exposure to toxic stress in that way can affect the developing brain of children, and it has lifelong consequences for learning, behavior and health," says Theresa Betancourt, a professor at the Boston College School of Social Work and director of the Research Program on Children and Adversity.

The European Commission established the Solidarity Program which supports EU Member States and other States to share the responsibility of recieving refugees from Ukraine. The most vulnerable refugees will be prioritized for transfer, including people with disabilities, older people, those with severe medical conditions, and mothers with young children. Unaccompanied and separated children will only be transferred following best interest procedures and family tracing.

More than 500,000 people from Ukraine have fled to Romania since Feb. 24. Most have already moved further west, but just under 80,000 remain, primarily women with small children. They are acutely aware of the dangers they could face if they remain in Ukraine.

While most refugees, especially those from the Kyiv area, have flowed to Poland, an estimated 350,000 have entered Moldova, one of Europe's poorest countries.

There is a "huge risk" that Ukrainian children and women fleeing the war may fall victim to human trafficking, the European Union's Home Affairs Commissioner warned on Monday.