EU extends 10-million euro aid to flood-hit South East Asia

MANILA, Philippines - The European Commission (EC) has allocated 10 million euros in humanitarian assistance to help the victims of floods in South East Asia, including the Philippines.

European Union Ambassador Guy Ledoux said yesterday the allocation will support the emergency response and provide relief to around 500,000 to one million people in flood-hit countries.

The EU official said the Philippines is expected to receive four million euros based on an assessment of the damage suffered from the typhoons and flooding.

“A target allocation of four million euros out of the 10 million euros will be for the Philippines but it’s not yet final,” Ledoux told The STAR.

Kristalina Georgieva, the EU Commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response, said that Vietnam, Cambodia, Lao PDR and Thailand will also receive humanitarian assistance from the EU.

“In a region which is ever prone to natural disasters, this year’s monsoon season has been particularly fierce, causing loss of life, damage to infrastructure and property and destroying livelihoods,” Georgieva said.

The funding will boost the efforts of humanitarian organizations working hard to provide immediate humanitarian assistance and help those who have lost their crops and livestock rebuild their livelihoods.

Non-government organizations, UN bodies, the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies will turn the EC’s support into tangible relief for those affected.

The priorities are health and sanitation, food assistance, short-term livelihood support such as food-for-work projects, seeds and agricultural tools, temporary shelters, boats, satellite phones and other equipment for logistics and telecommunications.

The Philippines, Cambodia, Vietnam, Lao PDR and Thailand have been hit by successive typhoons since July this year. The flooding killed over 600 people in the region while 7.4 million people were affected. Infrastructure, private properties and agricultural fields were also damaged.

The EC is a long-term provider of humanitarian assistance in Southeast Asia, bringing relief to the victims of displacement, conflict and natural disasters. It is also advocating measures for disaster preparedness and risk reduction.

It has provided humanitarian assistance worth more than 65 million euros in the region since 2010.