Commissaris Georgieva bezoekt Niger in kader voedselcrsis (en)
The European Commissioner for humanitarian aid, Kristalina Georgieva i, is going to Niger on 3 and 4 June to assess the humanitarian situation in the country and the efforts being deployed to respond to the food crisis.
Ms Georgieva will arrive in Niamey on Thursday, 3 June. Following talks with top government officials, she will meet all the Commission’s humanitarian partners and will attend a working dinner with the representatives of the EU Member States with a presence in the country and the major humanitarian agencies.
On 4 June she will leave by plane for Maradi to visit humanitarian projects in the region funded by DG ECHO, the Commission’s humanitarian office. There will be a press conference in Maradi at 11.45. On her return to Niamey at the end of the day, Ms Georgieva will have a last meeting with the Member States’ representatives to report on her visit. A press conference will be held at 19.30 at the Grand Hotel in Niamey before Ms Georgieva returns to Europe.
Background
The Commission has been involved in food assistance and food security in the region, and especially in Niger, for many years. Since 2007 it has granted almost EUR 100 million in humanitarian aid to the country. Its Niamey humanitarian office is following the current situation closely, having already identified the risk of a major food crisis at the end of 2009. With its permanent presence on the ground and its ability to assess needs and operations, the Commission plays a strategic role in the response to this crisis, sharing its expertise with humanitarian workers and other donors. The active presence in the country of a great many humanitarian agencies financed by DG ECHO means that action can be stepped up quickly to tackle this situation.
In 2009 the Commission granted EUR 33 million in humanitarian aid to the Sahel region, including EUR 15 million to Niger. Since the beginning of 2010, its humanitarian funding for the Sahel has totalled EUR 44 million (EUR 24 million of it approved today), of which EUR 25 million were for Niger. This funding has made it possible to meet the additional needs created by this crisis that its humanitarian experts have identified. It has also made it possible to increase the number of children treated for severe malnutrition, to extend food aid operations for the worst affected populations, to help with the treatment of acute malnutrition and to help restore the livelihoods of the most vulnerable households, farmers and shepherds.
Other Commission aid instruments have also been deployed in Niger. At the present time, the 10th European Development Fund (EDF), the Food Facility and the Food Security thematic programme have granted an additional EUR 34 million to tackle the crisis in Niger. The Commission is working particularly hard in the country through its proactive policy to combat food insecurity, doing everything in its power to tackle a crisis on this scale.
For more information on the Commission’s humanitarian aid please go to: