Humanitarian Aid

11.57 billion

Worldwide relief for communities affected by disasters and emergencies

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DG / Responsible Agencies: ECHO

Potential beneficiaries

United Nations agencies, Red Cross and Red Crescent, international organizations, nongovernmental organizations, businesses.

Description and objectives

The EU, its institutions and member states are the world’s largest donor of humanitarian aid. However, the scale, frequency and duration of crises requiring international humanitarian response are increasing, exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic and the deep trends underlying humanitarian crises: climate change, population growth, urbanization, resource scarcity and armed conflict.

In this context, the humanitarian aid instrument provides emergency assistance to people, particularly the most vulnerable, affected by natural or man-made disasters, regardless of race, ethnic group, religion, gender, age, nationality, political affiliation, and without distinctions dictated by political considerations.

The humanitarian aid instrument is by nature particularly flexible and is often the only one capable of practical intervention in situations of great risk, acute conflict and in the world’s most crisis-ridden and weakest countries.

Types of actions and projects

The main specific objectives of the humanitarian aid instrument are:

• To bring EU assistance to people and countries affected by natural disasters or man-made crises, whether temporary or ongoing in nature, based on the needs and the principle of saving and preserving life, preventing and alleviating human suffering, and safeguarding the integrity and dignity of those affected;

• Develop the resilience and resilience of vulnerable or disaster-affected communities, in complementarity with other EU instruments.

The humanitarian aid instrument finances actions in the following areas:

• Food and nutrition,

• Education and training in emergency settings,

• emergency housing,

• health care, water and sanitation, in countries outside the EU.

It is also concerned with supporting communities or individuals in preparing for, better responding to, and coping with the immediate aftermath of a disaster.

Humanitarian interventions mainly consist of financing projects implemented by partner organizations: international and national nongovernmental organizations, Red Cross and Red Crescent, UN agencies, and specialized agencies of member states.

Highlights

No particular changes are expected compared to the previous programming period, as the Humanitarian Aid Instrument regulation is released from the multi-year financial framework.