THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,
Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,
Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No.1257/96 of 20 June 1996 concerning humanitarian aid1, and in particular Article 2(a) and Article 13 thereof;
Whereas:
(1) Since early January this year, incessant rains in the Southern Africa region have affected thousands of people and caused damage and destruction to houses, schools, health centers, infrastructure and crops. Mozambique is the most affected country with close to 200,000 people affected and over 169,000 displaced, the majority of them woman and children. More rains are expected and most rivers remain above red alert levels.
(2) An extraordinary meeting of the Mozambican Coordination Council of Disaster Management (CCGC), held on 22 January 2013, resulted in the declaration of a red alert and the full activation of the National Emergency Operations Centre (CENOE) and National Civil Protection Unit (UNAPROC), supported by the Humanitarian Country Team (HCT), which signalled the affected communities' need for humanitarian assistance.
(3) Some towns have been completely evacuated, such as Chokwe town in the Limpopo Basin. Due to the severity of the Limpopo flooding, humanitarian operators are running very low on stocks of essential supplies, and capacities are stretched. The international community in the country, under the lead of the HCT has launched the Response and Recovery Proposal seeking contributions from donors (USD 30.5 million) to support the government's effort for a period of six months.
(4) Although the government of Mozambique has not launched an international appeal, it should be noted that the Director General of the Government of Mozambique’s National Institute for Disaster Management (INGC) has officially requested assistance through the office of the UN Resident Coordinator, further underlining the urgency of humanitarian situation in the affected areas.
(5) To reach populations in need, humanitarian aid should be channelled through non- governmental Organisations (NGOs) and international organisations, including United Nations (UN) agencies. Therefore, the European Commission should implement the budget by direct management or by joint management.
(6) Humanitarian aid actions financed by this Decision should be of a maximum duration of 6 months.
(7) It is estimated that an amount of EUR 3,000,000, from budget article 23 02 01 of the general budget of the European Union, is necessary to provide humanitarian assistance to over 200,000 flood affected people in Mozambique, taking into account the available budget, other donors' contributions and other factors. The activities covered by this Decision may be financed in full in accordance with Article 277 of the Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 1268/2012 of 29 October 2012 on the rules of application of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union ('the Rules of Application of the Financial Regulation'2), may agree to the full financing of actions.
(8) This Decision constitutes a financing decision within the meaning of Article 84 of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2012 on the financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union and repealing Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 ('the Financial Regulation') and Article 94 of the the Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 1268/2012 of 29 October 2012 on the rules of application of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union ('the Rules of Application of the Financial Regulation').
(9) Pursuant to Article 13 of Council Regulation (EC) N° 1257/96, the opinion of the Humanitarian Aid Committee is not required,