EU bestemt 51 mln euro extra voor humanitaire crisis in Darfur (en)
The European Commission has earmarked €51 million in humanitarian aid for the victims of conflict in Sudan. This amount includes at least €31 million for the people affected by the crisis in the Darfur region. This aid package will help provide the victims with food and nutritional support, shelter, access to clean water and sanitation, emergency health care and protection for vulnerable civilians. The aid will be channelled by ECHO, the European Commission's humanitarian aid department. It brings the total Commission aid for Sudan (including development aid) for this year to more than €248 million, including about €215 million for the victims of the Darfur crisis.
Louis Michel, the newly appointed Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Development, said in Khartoum, the Sudanese capital: «Yesterday I saw for myself the situation on the ground in Darfur. I spoke to some of the people benefiting from EU funded projects and heard about the horrors that they have lived through. It is high time that the many promises of peace made so far are respected, once and for all. I call upon all armed groups to stop violence against civilians and allow aid workers to do their difficult and vital job as safely as possible.
The European Commission is committed to providing sustained financing for this crisis, for as long as the needs are there. At the same time we have not forgotten the considerable funds needed in the South of Sudan, where a `crisis within a crisis' continues out of the media spotlight."
The humanitarian crisis in Darfur - one of the poorest regions of Sudan - has become the worst in the world since hostilities broke out in February 2003. Serious violations of international humanitarian law, including rape, attacks on civilians, forced relocations of displaced people, abductions of humanitarian workers and looting of aid items, have been reported by the UN and human rights organisations. Despite a considerable response from the international community, many affected people are still not receiving humanitarian assistance due to access problems. For thousands of people living in desperate conditions in remote areas, the aid delivery effort is running out of time. As they have not been able to plant due to displacement and insecurity, a major food crisis is on the horizon.
A large part of the humanitarian assistance to be provided by the Commission (about €10 million) will help the World Food Programme implement a massive food distribution programme in Darfur. The remaining funds will be used to provide food security, nutrition for the severely malnourished, protection and care for vulnerable groups, shelter and essential items such as cooking pots and clothes, clean water and basic sanitation services. At least €31 million will be allocated for victims of the Darfur crisis. However the EC will continue its significant humanitarian effort for people suffering in other parts of Sudan, especially in South, given that the international attention to these people has unfortunately decreased over the last few months.
The European Commission remains poised to provide more humanitarian aid to Darfur if needs so require, and will continue striving to facilitate a peaceful solution to this conflict. ECHO is currently managing € 74 million for Sudan, including €41 million for Darfur and € 14 million for Sudanese refugees in Chad. Since 1994, The EC has allocated through ECHO close to €290 million in humanitarian assistance to both North and South Sudan.
For more information on ECHO, please see: