The day after the adoption of its Communication on the prospects and challenges for EU humanitarian aid in the face of unprecedented global needs, the European Commission announced on Thursday 11 March that it will soon mobilise €17 million in emergency aid for the most vulnerable populations in Haiti and for disaster preparedness in the Caribbean.
Of this, €14 million is earmarked for Haiti. The aid will help people suffering from extreme food insecurity, protect migrants and victims of gang violence, and increase resilience to disasters, the agency said.
The remaining €3 million is earmarked for other Caribbean islands to fund disaster preparedness and resilience interventions in communities at risk.
“In Haiti, as in the rest of the Caribbean, recurrent natural hazards further increase vulnerabilities, which are also exacerbated by the coronavirus”, comments European Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarčič in a statement.
According to the UN, 4.4 million people will need humanitarian assistance in Haiti this year, which is 40% of the Haitian population. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)