02/12/2021 (Agence Europe) – On Thursday 2 December, the European Commission allocated an additional €325 million to extend the Emergency Social Safety Net (ESSN) programme until early 2023. The programme is unprecedented in its scale, providing monthly money transfers on an electronic debit card to over 1.5 million refugees in Turkey to meet their basic needs (food, health, bills, transport). “This support is a critical lifeline for hundred thousands of families, many of whom have been especially hard hit by the coronavirus pandemic” while “contributing to the Turkish economy”, said the Commissioner for Crisis Management, Janez Lenarčič, who was in Ankara on Thursday, according to a statement. (MB)