The EU allocates 3.2 million euros in humanitarian aid for Colombia

The European Commission (EC) released this Tuesday 3.2 million euros in additional humanitarian assistance for Colombia to respond to the “critical humanitarian needs” in the country due to the ongoing armed conflict and “widespread violence”, Brussels said in a statement.

(Also: European Parliament invites Elon Musk to testify in Brussels)

This brings to 37 million euros the humanitarian financing of the European Union (EU) for Colombia in 2022, of which 15 million have been allocated to respond to the country’s humanitarian needs and 22 million to address the impact of the Venezuelan crisis.

(You can read: The United Kingdom shows the first banknotes with the image of Carlos III)

According to the Community Executive, the new financing aims to meet the “most urgent” humanitarian needs of the population, particularly in the areas of Catatumbo, Arauca and Buenaventurawith a focus on indigenous and Afro-Colombian communities.

The aid programs will guarantee “protection, health, education and access to basic services.”

(Keep reading: 97-year-old woman sentenced for complicity in 10,500 Nazi murders)

Brussels recalled that more than 7.7 million people in Colombia need urgent humanitarian aidand some climatic factors, such as the “La Niña” phenomenon, which affected at least 900,000 people in 2022, “exacerbate the situation even more.”

An increase in poverty is also expected in Colombia as a result of rising food prices and job losses.

(Of interest: The Netherlands described its slave-owning past as a crime and apologized)

The EU estimates that the number of globally food insecure people has doubled between 2019 and 2022.

EFE