Harare - The European Union has increased its food aid support to Zimbabwe by U.S$2.49 million in response to the El Nino induced drought in the southern African nation.
This comes barely after five months after the EU allocated U.S$ 8 million from the reserve of the 11th European Development Fund to address the impact of drought in Zimbabwe.
The funding is delivered through EU’s Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid (ECHO).
“The EU has shown continuous solidarity with the people of Zimbabwe in the face of successive hazards and consequent humanitarian challenges.
“The worst has been avoided and we now have to prepare for the future, building more resilient communities against future climate shocks and other hazards,” said Ambassador Philippe Van Damme, EU Head of Delegation in Harare.
The additional financial support brings to a total contribution by the EU and its Member States to combat the El Nino induced crises in Zimbabwe to EUR 106 million (approximately USD 114 million) “to help in assisting some of the most vulnerable among the 4.1 million people that have become food insecure during the peak of the lean season and therefore in need of humanitarian assistance”.
In a statement, the EU said the latest funding will ensure EU’s implementing partners, including the UN World Food Programme and Save the Children, continue and increase the geographical reach of actions started in 2016 until the end of the lean season.
The EU Member States, of which eleven are represented in Harare, have bilaterally since 2015 also provided a total of EUR 80.1 million (approx. USD 86 million) for humanitarian relief programs; in particular by contributions from the United Kingdom/DFID, Germany, Netherlands, Sweden and Italy across a number of key sectors such as food assistance, water and sanitation, nutrition and overall support to livelihood systems.
