Eurocommissaris Georgieva (Humanitaire hulp): EU redde 140 miljoen levens in 2010 (en)
Despite the financial crisis most Europeans support humanitarian spending overseas, according to EU aid and crisis response commissioner Kristalina Georgieva i. In an exclusive interview with WAZ.EUobserver, she explains how the EU helped 140 million people survive natural disasters and conflicts in 2010.
The last year has seen a huge rise in the number of people affected by natural disasters and conflicts.
Crises including the Haiti earthquake killed 280,000 people across the world in 2010, compared to an average annual death toll of 70,000, and economic losses soared to €180 billion, compared to €80 billion in previous years.
Kristalina Georgieva, the EU's aid and crisis response commissioner, is responsible for running the the aid portfolio of the world's largest humanitarian aid donor. The 57-year-old Bulgarian, who until a year ago served as vice-president of the World Bank, was named in European of the Year November for her humanitarian work during the first year of her term.
Ms Georgieva tells WAZ.EUobserver how the EU helped 140 million people survive natural disasters and conflicts in 2010.
WAZ.EUobserver: How would you sum up 2010?
Kristalina Georgieva: A very difficult year. 2010 is the only year I can remember within which we had two mega-disasters: the Haiti earthquake and the Pakistan floods. In many other places nature put us to the test, with floods in Europe, forest fires in Russia and Israel.
We had also difficult conditions in countries with complex emergencies like Sudan and Kyrgyzstan. But it was also a year in which we as a community demonstrated that we stand by people in need, and the generosity that citizens and countries have shown during hardship at home is remarkable.
WAZ.EUobserver: Which is the weakest point in the world in terms of response to disasters and conflicts? Which areas do you consider most vulnerable?
KG: The place that keeps us focused and concerned is Sudan, because of the forthcoming referendum in a country that has gone through a very difficult history and is surrounded by a difficult neighbourhood. The weakness I see in the world today is in preparedness and prevention as we face an increased frequency and intensity of disasters.
A piece of good news in 2010 is that we avoided famine in the West African region of Sahel. Because of poor harvests, 10 million people were at risk of starvation last summer. But because lessons were learned through the famine of 2005, we had stocks in place and humanitarian workers ready to deploy the moment we saw the charts of hunger going up.
Another example of the importance of preparedness is the contrast between the aftermath of the earthquakes in Haiti and Chile. In Haiti, a 7.2 [magnitude] earthquake killed 260,000 people. In Chile, an 8.8 earthquake – 500 times stronger than the Haitian – killed some 500, mainly due to the tsunami.
WAZ.EUobserver: Was there any strain on your crisis response system, given the increased frequency and intensity of disasters combined with a global economic crisis?
KG: In August, when we polled our citizens in terms of their support for humanitarian action outside of the union, eight out of ten Europeans said: 'Yes, we support you, help people in dire need' – and that despite the seriousness of the crisis at home.
But Europeans expect that for their generosity there will be accountability for the money they commit. And that expectation has also gone up. I take this message from our citizens very seriously. We have eyes and ears on the ground. We place more than 50 percent of our staff in the hot spots of the planet. And we make sure we are very tough on our partners – the UN organisations and NGOs – for their accountability.
WAZ.EUobserver: In many hot spots humanitarian aid can't reach the needy because of armed conflicts. What are you doing in places like Somalia, Sudan and Yemen?
KG: The circumstances in Yemen are becoming more and more difficult. In parts of Yemen, they are now very rapidly becoming similar to the conditions in Somalia. Let's remember that even in Somalia we have humanitarian organisations. Yes, fewer than we would have liked to. But we have brave men and women who, despite the risks, continue to operate in these difficult conditions and build the local base for humanitarian aid.
Access makes the difference between life and death. As difficult as it is, the last people who give up are the humanitarian workers. A total of 102 humanitarian workers have died across the world this year.
WAZ.EUobserver: If the Europeans' level of solidarity is so high, why is it so difficult to end poverty?
KG: The end of poverty comes when people are empowered to take care of themselves. Bringing education, jobs and opportunities to places that are burdened by ethnic conflicts or poor use of natural resources is not an easy task. But it is not an impossible task.
Over the last decade, there have been millions of people who succeeded in getting to a point of taking care of themselves and their families. If we persevere, living in a world free of poverty is not impossible. What happens very often is that we don't have the patience to see the results and they may take a generation or two to achieve.
It's not just about investment but sometimes about changing how societies function. And that takes a long time. The important message to us in Europe is: 'Do not give up!'
WAZ.EUobserver: What were your happiest and unhappiest experiences during the first year of your term?
KG: My happiest moment was in Niger. It was seeing women whom we provide with €30 a month in assisance so that they can purchase food for their families. One of them took me to her little hut. It was around 4 pm, very hot. Her kids were sleeping in the shadow and they were asleep because their bellies were full.
Just seeing the picture of women with shining smiles on their faces, holding their vouchers and knowing that we had given them not only means to feed their children but also a standing in their community, was my happiest moment.
The most miserable moment? Oh, there have been many. The most difficult was in Pakistan. Because of recognising how enormously massive this disaster was and how incredibly difficult it would be to deal with it. Europe has put more than €400 million in humanitarian assistance for Pakistan. We have also mobilised our member states.
In Haiti, because it was within minutes that life has collapsed, the disaster had an immediate, visible face, whereas in Pakistan it has evolved and is actually still evolving. And the sheer scale of impact (20 million people impacted) the multiplicity of shocks that have been coming (infrastructure, agriculture and lives destroyed) that was the most difficult – being there and grasping the huge magnitude of that problem.
WAZ.EUobserver: Have you ever felt helpless, unable to do anything?
KG: That is actually something that may come some time but hasn't happened yet. When you are facing a disaster you have to mobilise, deploy and act. That puts your mind on a can-do track.
WAZ.EUobserver: Isn't it strange that a curable contagious disease like cholera has evolved into a major and quite lethal epidemic in Haiti?
KG: The earthquake was not Haiti's biggest problem. Haiti's biggest problem is lack of development for many decades, lack of systems and institutions that can take care of people. Cholera, a treatable disease, is killing thousands in Haiti because a medical system that could quickly bring diagnostics, information and treatment just simply does not exist.
What exists in Haiti is very rudimentary and is compensated by humanitarian action. External assistance had turned the trends of mortality from a peak of 50 victims a day down to 22 in one week. The elections have also caused trouble, and the trend is going up again. That cannot be fixed from outside.
Institutional development has to happen inside in the country. But again, it takes time and requires the international community to stick with the difficult country and not give up. Look at Somalia; the international community pretty much gave up on it – luckily, not entirely. In Haiti, it is going to take generations to transform the country.
WAZ.EUobserver: Your humanitarian aid budget for this year is virtually scraped out. What about next year?
KG: With a sense of pride for Europe I can say we started the year with €800 million and ended the year spending €1.1 billion. With this we touched the lives of 140 million people around the world – a very significant impact for the amount spent.
In a moment of economic crisis we have increased humanitarian spending by €300 million, which is not insignificant. The most important way to get people to support us to have the resources we need is to show that the money is spent for the purpose designated. When citizens are convinced that what they do goes for the service of humanity and for a better world and a more stable world they are generous.
I pray that 2011 is a less taxing year. At the heart of hearts of Europeans is the sense that we owe it not only to the needy but to ourselves and our children to have a world that is based on humanity and solidarity.