EU humanitarian aid decisions worth more than EUR 3 million

The European Commission has recently taken decisions to help victims of humanitarian crises in Eritrea (€1.3 million), Central African Republic (€1 million), the Philippines (€500,000) and Argentina (€495,000). The assistance is channelled through the Humanitarian Aid Office (ECHO), which comes under the authority of Commissioner Poul Nielson.


Eritrea: €1.3 million

The funding under this humanitarian aid decision will help meet the acute health/nutrition and water needs of drought victims in Eritrea. The aid will include provision of water where levels have receded to below humanitarian minimums, as well as the measuring of and response to emergency levels of acute malnutrition. Funds will be allocated to humanitarian agencies operating in the region, via ECHO. The onset of a new and severe drought at the end of 2002 has renewed ECHO's intervention in the region. The new drought, compounding problems of the population's low capacities as a consequence of previous droughts and the war, has led to crop failure, livestock deaths and dehydration. Over the period 2000 to 2002, ECHO provided €16.8 million to the region to support victims of the border conflict between Eritrea and Ethiopia (1998-2000).

http://europa.eu.int/comm/development/body/country/country_home_en.cfm?cid=er&lng=en&status=old


Central African Republic: €1 million

The humanitarian crisis in the Central African Republic is the result of a civil war between the government and rebel factions that lasted from October 2002 to March 2003. The ensuing violence largely destroyed the health care delivery system in the central and northern parts of the country, which were directly affected by conflict. The present funding decision will provide primary and secondary health facilities in these regions with drugs, food, medical equipment, logistics, technical assistance and small-scale rehabilitation of water, sanitation and health infrastructure. ECHO has previously provided €1 million in emergency assistance to support 35,000 people displaced by fighting when the conflict first began following an attempted coup d'état in 2001.

http://europa.eu.int/comm/development/body/country/country_home_en.cfm?cid=cf&lng=en&status=old


Philippines: €500,000

This humanitarian aid plan will help meet the basic needs of people internally displaced by civil conflict in the Philippines. The funds will provide plastic roofing, mattresses, jerrycans for water and help install/restore latrines and water pumps for about 31,000 people in the province of Maguindanao. Despite initial moves towards peace in 2002, renewed fighting between the government and Islamic rebel forces seeking independence has resulted in a renewed wave of refugees on the main island of Mindanao since February this year. ECHO has provided more than €2.2 million to support victims of this crisis since 2000.

http://europa.eu.int/comm/external_relations/philippines/intro/index.htm


Argentina: €495,000

Following four years of recession and virtual economic collapse, Argentina faces an unprecedented and profound social, economic and political crisis. In particular the northern territories face a critical situation as 70 percent of the population live below the poverty line and are vulnerable to malnutrition and disease. This decision is designed to help combat malnutrition among vulnerable groups affected by the crisis in Argentina over the next nine months. The aid will fund a nutritional vulnerability survey and provide food and medical supplies to those most in need.

http://europa.eu.int/comm/external_relations/argentina/intro/index.htm

http://europa.eu.int/comm/echo/index_en.htm

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