Finland to provide EUR 46.4m humanitarian aid to world crises | national

Tue, 17 Mar, 2015 12:00:09 AM

Finland to provide EUR 46.4m humanitarian aid to world crises

FTimes- Xinhua Report, Mar 17

Syrian families eat in the courtyard of a Syrian government's temporary housing center that houses displaced those who fled the violence in the Eastern Ghouta region on February 23, 2015 in Qudsaya, west of the capital Damascus. US-led air strikes against the Islamic State group in Syria have killed more than 1,600 people, mainly jihadists, since they began five months ago, a monitor said on February 23, 2015. Photo AFP-LEHTIKUVA

Minister of International Development Sirpa Paatero on Monday announced 46.4 million euros of humanitarian aid for the most turbulent areas in the world, according to the Finnish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The aid will be donated to Syria, its neighboring countries that have received refugees, South Sudan, the Central African Republic and Ukraine.

The Finnish assistance will be allocated through the Finnish Red Cross, Finn Church Aid and other Finnish and international organizations.

"Finland considers it important to respond to acute and protracted needs in terms of human protection, health, education and food," said Paatero.

Finland provided 162 million U.S. dollars in 2013 for humanitarian emergencies, making it the 18th largest contributor of government humanitarian assistance in the world, according to Global Humanitarian Assistance.

In 2014, Finland contributed a total of 112 million U.S. dollars of humanitarian aid.

Finland Times