EU approves 2 million euros for quake survivors

KATHMANDU: The European Union (EU) has approved a €2 million aid package for the earthquake-affected people in Jajarkot and Rukum West districts.

Issuing a statement on Thursday, the Delegation of the European Union to Nepal said the aid will be used to help provide shelter, access to clean water and sanitation, and health care, among other services, for the quake survivors.

“The support package includes €600,000 to support the work of humanitarian partners already providing assistance in affected areas. In addition, €200,000 have been allocated to the Nepalese Red Cross Society, via the Disaster Response Emergency Fund (DREF) of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC),” the statement added.

Likewise, the EU will mobilize in-kind assistance from its  European Humanitarian Response Capacity (EHRC) worth €1.2 million. “This will include tents and winterization kits that will be sent from the EU’s stockpile in Kuala Lumpur, to address the crucial shelter needs of vulnerable families whose homes were destroyed,” the statement added.

Janez Lenarčič, Commissioner for Crisis Management, EU, said the new aid package will bring shelter to people that have lost their homes so that they can be prepared to face the upcoming winter.

This new funding comes in addition to the €2 million already allocated to Nepal at the start of this year, with the goal of responding to natural hazards and to strengthen disaster preparedness, the EU said in the statement.