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EU Humanitarian Aid

Based on international humanitarian principles and as set out in the European Consensus on Humanitarian Aid, the EU provides needs-based humanitarian assistance with particular attention to the most vulnerable victims. Aid is channelled impartially to the affected populations, regardless of their race, ethnic group, religion, gender, age, nationality or political affiliation. The EU provides remedy to all major crises zones around the world including Syria, South Sudan, and the Central African Republic, as well as countries facing post-conflict instability, such as Côte d’Ivoire. The EU also plays a crucial role in assisting and raising awareness of "forgotten crises" – often protracted crises which escaped the media and international community's attention. Recently, the EU has been instrumental to focus attention on the dramatic situation in the Central African Republic. EU humanitarian aid covers areas such as: food and nutrition, shelter, healthcare, water and sanitation, and others. Aid, funded by the EU, is carried out in partnership with international organisations and humanitarian NGOs.

EUR 83m EU humanitarian aid to support people in Ukraine and Moldova 20 February 2024, 18:51 CET
The European Commission announced Tuesday an initial EUR 83 million in humanitarian aid to support the people affected by Russia's war against Ukraine for 2024.

EU sends more humanitarian aid to Gaza 07 November 2023, 22:56 CET
The European Union announced it was sending an extra EUR 25 million in humanitarian aid to Gaza Monday, with a quadrupling of EU humanitarian assistance to over EUR 100 million for Gaza this year.

EU provides vital aid to fight wildfires in Mediterranean region 29 July 2023, 00:20 CET
As several countries grapple with rapidly spreading wildfires, the EU has stepped in to reinforce firefighting efforts and provide much-needed support to the affected communities.

ERCC - Emergency Response Coordination Centre 30 May 2023, 23:46 CET
The Emergency Response Coordination Centre (ERCC) is the heart of the EU Civil Protection Mechanism. It coordinates the delivery of assistance to disaster-stricken countries, such as relief items, expertise, civil protection teams and specialised equipment. The centre ensures the rapid deployment of emergency support and acts as a coordination hub between all EU Member States, the 9 additional participating states, the affected country, and civil protection and humanitarian experts. The ERCC operates 24/7. It can help any country inside or outside the EU affected by a major disaster upon request from the national authorities or a UN body.

Commission outlines goals to boost EU disaster resilience 09 February 2023, 21:44 CET
As natural and man-made disasters become more frequent and intense, the EU announced Wednesday common goals to boost Europe's capacity to withstand the effects of major disasters and emergencies.

European Union Disaster Resilience Goals - guide 08 February 2023, 22:20 CET
The European Commission adopted on 8 February a Recommendation and a Communication to establish common goals to boost disaster resilience in the areas of civil protection.

EU Commissioner in Ukraine announces EUR 205m humanitarian aid 15 June 2022, 18:43 CET
The EU allocated EUR 205 million in further humanitarian aid to Ukraine Thursday, as Commissioner Lenarcic visited the country to help coordinate the EU's crisis response on the ground.

EU's new, reinforced agency for asylum starts work 19 January 2022, 22:40 CET
The new European Union Agency for Asylum started work Wednesday with its reinforced mandate, with the aim of speeding up asylum decisions and converging reception standards across the EU.

EU pledges further EUR 30m to support Lebanon 13 August 2020, 01:00 CET
At Monday's international conference on aid for Lebanon, the EU Commission pledged new funding worth EUR 30m to help address the immediate needs of those affected by the deadly explosion in Beirut.

EU provides coronavirus aid to Yemen, as famine looms 05 June 2020, 18:23 CET
The EU will provide funding of EUR 70 million in Yemen, the Commission said Wednesday, as the coronavirus threatens to worsen one of the world's worst humanitarian crises, where famine already looms.

EUR 2 billion to reinforce EU's crisis response capability 04 June 2020, 00:09 CET
The EU Commission proposed Tuesday to give the EU the capability to react more swiftly when a serious cross-border emergency such as the coronavirus strikes and affects EU countries at the same time.

rescEU and Humanitarian Aid under the new MFF 02 June 2020, 18:36 CET
The Commission proposed on 2 June to give the European Union the tools to react more quickly when a serious cross-border emergency such as the coronavirus strikes and affects EU countries at the same time.

RescEU - EU Civil Protection Mechanism 19 March 2020, 22:47 CET
The overall objective of the EU Civil Protection Mechanism is to strengthen cooperation between the EU Member States and 6 Participating States in the field of civil protection, with a view to improve prevention, preparedness and response to disasters. When the scale of an emergency overwhelms the response capabilities of a country, it can request assistance via the Mechanism. Through the Mechanism, the European Commission plays a key role in coordinating the response to disasters in Europe and beyond and contributes to at least 75% of the transport and/or operational costs of deployments.

EU firefighting fleet launched for next forest fire season 22 May 2019, 18:18 CET
To prepare for the risk of forest fires during the upcoming summer, the Commission is launching today the first fleet of firefighting aircraft under the new rescEU system to tackle natural disasters.

Increase in EU spending on education in emergencies 25 May 2018, 10:42 CET
The EU Commission adopted Friday a new policy framework to increase humanitarian funding for education in emergencies and crises to 10% of its overall humanitarian aid budget as of 2019.

Concern over decrease in EU's development aid 12 April 2018, 00:09 CET
A decline in development aid from the EU and its Member States is linked to an 80 per cent reduction in debt relief operations and a decrease in in-donor refugee costs, the EU Commission said Tuesday.

rescEU: EU disaster management 23 November 2017, 23:28 CET
The European Commission has tabled a set of proposals to strengthen the EU's civil protection response and boost Europe's ability to better deal with natural disasters. The proposal establishes a dedicated reserve of operational capacities at Union level – rescEU – and strengthens preparedness and prevention measures. Concretely, it focuses on two key areas: creating the rescEU system to increase overall disaster response capacities available in the EU and investing more in prevention and preparedness.

The EU and the crisis in Syria 07 April 2017, 13:09 CET
EU response to the Syrian crisis The war in Syria, one of the worst humanitarian crises the world has faced since World War II, continues to have devastating and tragic consequences for its people. It is also having an increasingly destabilising impact on the wider region, through the displacement of people, the spread of terrorism, the exacerbation of political and sectarian differences.

EUR 83m to improve conditions for refugees in Greece 20 April 2016, 01:13 CET
The European Commission has announced EUR 83 million to improve living conditions for refugees in Greece, with funding made available immediately to the UNHCR, the International Federation of the Red Cross and six international NGOs.

EU boosts aid to Ethiopia after worst ever El Nino 08 April 2016, 23:01 CET
The European Commission has announced aid for Ethiopia worth some EUR 122.5 million, amidst a worsening humanitarian situation caused by one of the most severe extreme El Nino weather phenomenon on record.

EU aid for children's education in conflict zones 06 April 2016, 12:49 CET
The European Commission announced on Tuesday a EUR 52 million humanitarian aid package aimed at educational projects for children caught up in conflict zones and other emergencies in 2016.

World Humanitarian Summit: EU sets out plan 02 September 2015, 22:57 CET
The European Commission has adopted the Communication 'Towards the World Humanitarian Summit – A global partnership for principled and effective humanitarian action'.

New European Neighbourhood Policy - guide 25 May 2011, 14:18 CET
Catherine Ashton, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Commission Vice-President and Štefan Füle, EU Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighbourhood Policy, today launched a new and ambitious European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) -- confirming the EU’s determined and reinforced engagement with its neighbours.

Humanitarian aid 13 January 2013, 20:28 CET
Humanitarian aid and civil protection - call for proposals

European disaster response - guide 27 October 2010, 11:59 CET
The communication adopted by the European Commission represents a first step towards the development of a reinforced EU disaster response capacity, both in terms of civil protection and humanitarian assistance. These are the two instruments used by the EU to deliver relief assistance to people affected by disasters. The creation of a European Emergency Response Capacity, based on Member States' assets, and the development of a European Emergency Response Centre, are proposed as the cornerstones of strategy to strengthen the EU disaster response system. It will provide the basis for an improved EU disaster management system which is more effective and efficient (in terms of rapidity of deployment and appropriateness of action), coherent (operational and political coordination) and visible.