Japan: Disaster Support From EU
- April 9th, 2011
- Posted by EUEditor
The European Commission has doubled relief money sent from member states to Japan, bringing the total to €15-million, (A$21.5-million, dcerates.com, 8.4.11).
EMERGENCY AND HUMANITARIAN AID
It announced the extra €10-million (A$14.4-million) is aid following the earthquake and tsunami of 11.3.11.
“The new funding will provide assistance to more than 30,000 people, who live in temporary shelters and rely on aid for food, water, blankets and mattresses and other immediate provisionsâ€, said Kristalina Georgieva, the Commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian aid and Crisis Response.
“We continue to stand by a brave friend in need.
“While we support the affected people, we need to also draw our conclusions and prepare for a world where disasters are both more frequent, and more destructive.”
The Commissioner said a five-member EU Civil Protection team had been working in Japan since 19.3.11, coordinating the reception and onward transport of the aid in Japan.
DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE
Japan is itself long-established as a clear leader in development aid spending in support of developing countries, setting a strong example of generosity in better times for itself than then present.
For its part, the European Union, together with its 27 member states acting separately, is spending a total of €53.8-billion (A$77.6-billion) a year on official development aid.
That is the figure for 2010 released this week, showing a rise of close to €4.5-billion (A$6.5-billion) over 2009.
It says the amount is half the world’s total in the category of official development aid, representing about 0.43% of EU Gross National Income – while it has set a target of 0.7%.
Reference
European Union Delegation to Australia, Canberra, Newsletter 305, 7.4.11; “European support to Japan’s humanitarian needs …â€; “EU maintains leadership on development aid …â€. [[email protected]]