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Uganda

Uganda: Commission grants €2 million in humanitarian aid

The European Commission has allocated €2 million in humanitarian aid to help tackle the needs of vulnerable people affected by conflict and drought in Northern Uganda. This decision is primarily targeted at facilitating access to health services and safe drinking water, and improving the sanitation situation of vulnerable populations. The funds will be channelled through the Humanitarian Aid Office (ECHO), which comes under the responsibility of Commissioner Poul Nielson.
The humanitarian situation in Northern Uganda has been deteriorating for several years, largely due to the high level of insecurity, which has brought the economy to a virtual standstill and forced some 800,000 people to leave their homes. Cattle raiding in North Eastern Uganda is an additional cause of displacement. The Northern part of the country has also been facing prolonged dry spells, which have led to a drop in production of major staples, such as millet and sorghum. This decision will fund programmes which address the serious humanitarian problems faced by Northern Uganda health and nutrition, water and sanitation, as well as shelter and food security. The main group targeted by this decision will be internally displaced people (IDPs). These problems are largely going unnoticed by the international community, making Northern Uganda a forgotten crisis. ECHO has disbursed more than €5 million to victims of the crisis Northern Uganda since 2000.