South Sudan: UN calls, EU responds. €2 million from EU Commission for people affected by floods

To cope with the devastation caused by floods in South Sudan, the European Commission has allocated €2 million in emergency humanitarian funding, in response to a UN call to the international community. The floods ravaged 31 of the 78 counties of the country, driving over 750,000 people into even more precarious conditions, killing livestock, destroying crops and homes, forcing people to migrate. “Prior to the flooding, around 70% of South Sudan’s population was already in need of urgent humanitarian assistance”, as thousands of people were already suffering from malnutrition due to famine, Commissioner for Crisis Management, Janez Lenarčič, explained. “The emergency funding will be used to respond to the immediate needs of those affected” and will be channelled through the EU’s humanitarian partner, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), to provide water and sanitation, shelter, and other essential non-food items. According to Commissioner Lenarčič, this event is “a timely reminder for urgent action on climate change” whose effects “are real”. And it is “vulnerable populations” who “suffer the repercussions”.
Valentina Bombelli