Aid for the victims of humanitarian disasters
European Commission Humanitarian Office (ECHO)
Victims of humanitarian disasters around the world need our help. The European Commission Humanitarian Office (ECHO) has a budget of EUR 610 million (up from EUR 570 million in 2004), making it the second largest humanitarian aid donor after the US. Together with the bilateral aid provided by EU states (including Germany as one of the largest contributors), Europe is the top donor in the world. ECHO and the EU member states finance aid projects run by the United Nations, the International Committee of the Red Cross and numerous non-governmental organizations. ECHO's core tasks include protecting the lives of people in distress, be it due to natural disasters, armed conflicts or civil war. By way of example, ECHO finances relief activities for refugees and internally displaced persons, and, where needed, transports of relief goods. Emergency repair and reconstruction activities fall within its remit, as do demining, mine awareness-raising programmes and disaster reduction.
Humanitarian Aid Committee (HAC)
The member states discuss fundamental humanitarian aid issues once a month in the Humanitarian Aid Committee (HAC), which is both an administrative and a regulating entity. All projects that cost more than 2 million euro must obtain its approval.
Disaster relief : MIC and ESDP
In 2002, a Community Mechanism to facilitate reinforced cooperation in civil protection assistance interventions was created as a means of coordinating the aid provided by the member states for disaster relief. The aim of the Community Mechanism is to improve the coordination of interventions following natural disasters and particularly serious accidents. The Monitoring and Information Centre (MIC), which is staffed around the clock, has been established by the European Commission under this Mechanism. Disaster relief is also a focal area of the European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP). Under its aegis, European armed forces may conduct humanitarian tasks and rescue operations (as part of the Petersberg tasks). German forces are indirectly involved in humanitarian aid/disaster relief interventions.
EU Plan of Action
Following the tsunami in December 2004, the EU Foreign Ministers adopted an EU Plan of Action on 31 January 2005, which included short-term and longer-term measures. The primary goal of the Action Plan is to better coordinate all available resources in the EU across the board and at all levels, in order to deal with the consequences of such disasters effectively, both now and in the future. The work on implementing the Action Plan continues, with regular input from the Council.
Last updated 01.02.2006