The European Union has committed a total of 181.5 million euros so far this year to provide humanitarian aid to countries most vulnerable to the effects of climate change and famine in Central and West Africa, Crisis Management Commissioner Janez Lenarcic has announced.
«Some 38 million people needed assistance last year in the region, where the security situation remains of high concern,» the European commissioner explained in a statement, linking the global impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine to the «unprecedented» level of food insecurity.
In addition, the delivery of humanitarian aid is increasingly «difficult» to the countries of Central and East Africa «due to the increase in breaches of international humanitarian law,» he added.
In this context, the EU announces allocations for Burkina Faso (25.5 million euros), Mali (26 million), Mauritania (6.5 million) and Central African Republic (20.5 million), in addition to 500,000 euros of regional support.
This funding joins the allocations committed in January for Nigeria (34 million euros), Niger (25 million euros), Chad (26.5 million euros) and Cameroon (17 million euros).
Brussels recalls that food prices have risen drastically overall, by 40-60% over the past year, not only because of local factors such as the lack of rainfall, but also because of the geopolitical context, as several countries in the Sahel and Central Africa depend mainly on grain imported from Ukraine and Russia.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
