The European Union (EU) has retaken charge of providing intervention funds and humanitarian needs to vulnerable people and countries as the union allots new €500,000 from its Epidemics Tool to aid Nigeria in addressing the cholera epidemic in parts of the country. Press Officer, EU Delegation to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Mr. Modestus Chukwulaka, revealed in a statement that the intervention would be mainly to those affected by the cholera outbreak in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe States.
Chukwulaka said that in the affected states, around 1.6 million internally displaced persons and 1 million members of the local population are at risk, while at least 11,820 cases and 382 associated deaths have been recorded in the three states. EU Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarčič asserts that Nigeria has been facing several concurrent crises, such as the measles and malaria outbreaks, record levels of food insecurity and malnutrition, and catastrophic flooding, which the latter also negatively affects the spread of cholera in the country.
EU is recognized as the world’s leading humanitarian aid contributor.
However, it has been alleged that the country’s precarious security situation also contributes to increasingly challenging access conditions in several localities. According to Lenarčič, with the aid of the EU, the humanitarian partners of the union will strive to diminish morbidity and death through early detection, creation of awareness, health education, and case management. It is noteworthy that the EU has contributed 100,000 euros to Nigeria in the wake of the devastating floods that have swept across the country.
In addition, the European Union (EU) committed €700,000 in humanitarian aid to support the campaign against cholera outbreaks in Syria in October 2022. Likewise, the EU committed €100,000 for the cholera outbreak in Ethiopia and €1 million for the cholera outbreak in Haiti. It has been widely acknowledged that the European Union and its member states are the most prolific contributor to humanitarian aid globally. The provision of relief assistance is an expression of European solidarity with people in need worldwide.
EIB will support agri-food sector market access.
Likewise, earlier this year, the EU provided financial aid to Nigeria in the value of 1.29 billion euros ($1.3 billion), which was granted as part of the EU’s “Green Deal” initiative to support the diversification of the Nigerian economy away from its reliance on oil and will also be provided until 2027. It encompasses around 57 projects and primarily emphasizes increasing access to renewable energy sources and encouraging the growth of the agricultural sector in the nation.
Ultimately, the funding will help address some major concerning issues in the country, including nature-based measures to reduce climate change vulnerability, combating deforestation and desertification, and a waste-to-energy initiative in Cross River State. In parallel, the European Investment Bank (EIB) sovereign lending will support the country’s agri-food sector access to markets by financing rural roads, as well as climate adaptation and mitigation efforts. The European Investment Bank (EIB) and European Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) will aid different participants in Nigeria’s agricultural and energy sectors.
The union continues to provide humanitarian aid to vulnerable people.
Furthermore, the union aims to save lives, prevent and alleviate human suffering, and safeguard the integrity and human dignity of populations affected by natural disasters and artificial crises. With headquarters in Brussels and a global network of field offices, the European Union continues to support the most vulnerable people based on humanitarian needs. It has supported millions of victims of conflict and disasters annually through the Department of European Commission’s Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations.
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