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 and Article 15(3) thereof;
Whereas:
(1) Over the last years, the frequency and severity of natural disasters around the world has increased, in particular floods and storms. Weather-related disasters include slowonset emergencies such as extreme temperatures, drought and water-related diseases such as malaria, cholera and dengue. Other localised disasters include earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, explosions, fires, tsunamis and different emergencies confined to small areas, which may occasionally entail population movements or civil unrest;
(2) The scale of most of these emergencies is not necessarily large and often does not trigger international disaster response; however, local coping mechanisms may come under severe strain, leading to an increase of existing vulnerabilities;
(3) In countries where infrastructure and public health services are weak, the needs caused by small-scale disasters can often only be met by local humanitarian organisations. Red Cross and Red Crescent National Societies supported by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, are particularly well-rooted in local communities and are often best placed to intervene. A rather small response (EUR 50,000 - EUR 200,000) is typically called for in order to finance the provision of short-term relief and rescue activities;
(4) In accordance with the principles of Good Humanitarian Donorship2 subscribed in the European Consensus on Humanitarian Aid3, funds should be made available by the European Commission to respond to emergencies not covered by Primary Emergency and Emergency humanitarian aid Decisions, thus ensuring equitable funding for smallscale disasters response;
(5) The International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies established the Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) to ensure an immediately available financial support for the National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies' response to small-scale emergencies, which includes supporting immediate preparedness to imminent crises;
(6) It is pertinent to contribute to the funding of the DREF, in complement to other types of immediate response and to the funding provided to humanitarian organisations within the framework of other Commission Decisions, in order to guarantee an efficient, effective and timely response to small-scale disasters;
(7) Actions funded by this Decision should address specific imminent, sudden or slowonset disasters falling under the category of small-scale disasters;
(8) For the purposes of this Decision, a disaster is considered to be of small-scale when it affects a limited number of people at a localised level and does not immediately trigger international assistance;
(9) In order to preserve life and to substitute for the loss of basic subsistence, the allocation to the DREF should finance the provision of short-term relief in the form of food, health, shelter, water and sanitation and any other assistance necessary to address the category of disasters covered by this Decision;
(10) The European Commission should implement this funding by joint management with the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC);
(11) The contribution to the DREF should be used within a period of 16 months;
(12) It is estimated that an amount of EUR 1,500,000 from budget article 23 02 01 of the general budget of the European Union is necessary to provide humanitarian assistance to people affected by small-scale disasters in third countries 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 253 of the Implementing Rules of the Financial Regulation established by the Commission Regulation (EC, Euratom) 2342/20024;
(13) The present Decision constitutes a financing Decision within the meaning of Article 75 of the Financial Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002, Article 90 of the detailed rules for the implementation of the Financial Regulation determined by Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2342/2002, and Article 15 of the internal rules on the implementation of the general budget of the European Union5.
HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:
Article 1
1. In accordance with the objectives and general principles of humanitarian aid, the Commission hereby approves a total amount of EUR 1,500,000 for the financing of humanitarian actions in the form of a contribution to the Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF), from budget article 23 02 01 of the 2010 general budget of the European Union.
2. In accordance with Article 2 of Council Regulation No.1257/96, the principal objective of this Decision is to save and preserve the life of vulnerable populations affected by small-scale disasters in third countries. The humanitarian Actions shall be implemented in the pursuance of the following specific objective:
- To address humanitarian needs arising from small-scale emergencies by providing immediate preparedness for and an adequate response to specific, imminent, sudden or slow-onset small scale disasters.
The full amount of this Decision is allocated to this specific objective.