China News Agency, Brussels, January 26 (Reporter De Yongjian) The European Union announced on the 26th that the global humanitarian crisis has worsened due to the impact of the new crown pneumonia pandemic and climate change. For this reason, the European Union decided to increase its humanitarian aid budget to 1.4 billion euros, of which Africa and the Middle East will receive 890 million euros in aid.
By convention, the EU will announce the humanitarian aid budget for that year at the beginning of each year.
The 2020 EU humanitarian aid budget is 900 million euros, which is 500 million euros more than the 2021 budget.
The announcement issued by the European Commission shows that in 2021, the EU will provide 505 million euros in aid to Africa, covering the countries in the Lake Chad Basin (Cameroon, Chad, Niger, Nigeria, etc.) that have been affected by violent conflicts and climate change for a long time, and they are facing serious problems. The countries in the Sahel region (Mauritania, Mali, Burkina Faso, etc.) in security crisis, the Horn of Africa countries (Somali, Ethiopia, etc.) that are suffering from the "double blow" of the new crown pneumonia epidemic and the severe locust plague, and facing severe food South Sudan, Central African Republic and other countries in crisis.
The second is to provide 385 million euros of aid to the Middle East (including Turkey) to respond to the Syrian humanitarian crisis and rescue Syrian refugees who fled to Turkey and other countries due to the war. It will also cover Yemen, where the humanitarian situation is extremely severe.
In Asia and Latin America, the EU will provide 180 million euros in aid, with key aid targets including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Venezuela, Colombia and other countries hosting nearly 1 million Myanmar Rohingya refugees; in addition, Ukraine, the Caucasus and the Western Balkans will Received 28 million euros in assistance.
The announcement shows that the remaining 302 million euro budget is for "mobile assistance", which will be used to respond to sudden crises and humanitarian aviation emergency rescue. Countries vulnerable to climate change will also receive this assistance to deal with possible floods. , Forest fires, earthquakes, hurricanes and other natural disasters.
The announcement quoted the European Commission’s Crisis Management Commissioner Lenarcic as saying that through the additional budget, the EU will continue to play a leading role in the field of humanitarian assistance. At the same time, it calls for the international community to face more global issues such as the new crown pneumonia pandemic. Partners donate funds and grants to try to bridge the gap between current humanitarian needs and aid funds.
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