Brussels, 14/01/2011 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission decided on Friday 14 January to provide emergency funding of €2 million for humanitarian assistance to victims of the severe rain in Sri Lanka.
The monsoon brought with it extremely heavy rainfall in the east and centre-north of the country on 12-13 January causing flooding which is affecting almost 1 million people.
The financial aid will help provide emergency food aid, drinking water and sanitation and emergency relief items to the most in need, including the 300,000 displaced persons who have found shelter in temporary relocation centres or host families. Six hundred and thirty emergency relocation centres have had to be set up.
The funding allocated by the staff of European International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response Commissioner Kristalina Georgieva will be available to ECHO's partner agencies on the ground within 72 hours.
Though the rain is less severe than that in Brazil, the flooding in Sri Lanka has nonetheless claimed 37 lives. The European Commission expresses its condolences to the families of the victims and to the Sri Lankan authorities, said the commissioner's spokesman Ferran Tarradellas. (A.N./transl.rt)