L’humanitarian aid EU aid, it is an annual budget of 1.8 billion euros, provided in more than 110 countries through partnerships with United Nations agencies, international organisations and NGOs. It is based in particular on the mechanism of civil protection of the Union, which allows a State to be helped in an emergency situation, as has been the case in Ukraine since 2022. European aid also remains essential in Gaza, where it is questioned by Israel, which is very critical of the UN agency UNRWA. Sub-Saharan Africa, and in particular the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), constitute other theatres of European humanitarian aid.
In these critical contexts, the majority of the EU humanitarian budget is allocated to projects that respond to the needs of people displaced by conflict, and the communities that host them. Active since 1992, EU humanitarian aid has been strengthened in recent years. It is organised in particular through an intervention capacity, set up in 2022 to increase the forces of the “EU Civil Protection Mechanism”, in the event of insufficient capacities. A European Solidarity Corps offers volunteering opportunities in the humanitarian field.
The heart of the EU Civil Protection Mechanism is located in Brussels, at the “Emergency Response Coordination Centre”. This mechanism has been used for example for evacuations in Afghanistan (2021), repatriations during the COVID-19 pandemic (2020 and 2021), or during hurricanes Irma and Maria in the Caribbean (2017).
The EU also has its own European reserve of capabilities, called rescEU, with a fleet of helicopters and water bombers, medical evacuation planes, field hospitals, etc.
