Report from the Commission (Humanitarian Aid Office : ECHO) - Annual Report 2002
Date: 2003-07-16
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: ECHO, activity report, administration of the Institutions, aid evaluation, financial management, humanitarian aid

EN

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES

Brussels, 16.7.2003
COM(2003) 430 final

REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION

(Humanitarian Aid Office – ECHO)
Annual Report 2002

 
TABLE OF CONTENTS

1.

2.

3.

Executive Summary ........................................................................................................... 3

general policy framework in 2002 ..................................................................................... 5

overview of Echo’s humanitarian operations..................................................................... 6

3.1.

Africa, the Caribbean, and the Pacific ......................................................................... 6

3.1.1. Horn of Africa and Eastern Africa ............................................................................... 6

3.1.2.

Southern Africa .......................................................................................................... 13

3.1.3. Central Africa............................................................................................................. 16

3.1.4. West Africa ................................................................................................................ 19

3.2.

Balkans, NIS Countries, Southern Mediterranean ..................................................... 21

3.2.1. Balkans....................................................................................................................... 21

3.2.2. Newly Independent States (NIS)................................................................................ 24

3.2.3.

Southern Mediterranean and Middle East.................................................................. 27

3.3.

Asia and Latin America ............................................................................................. 30

3.3.1. Asia ............................................................................................................................ 30

3.3.2.

Latin America............................................................................................................. 40

3.4.

Disaster Preparedness - Dipecho................................................................................ 44

4. Cross-cutting issues.......................................................................................................... 44

4.1.

4.2.

4.3.

4.4.

4.5.

4.6.

4.7.

Contractual relations with partners – FPA ................................................................. 44

Relations with major humanitarian partners and non-EU donors.............................. 45

Relations with other Community Institutions ............................................................ 46

Planning tools............................................................................................................. 47

Grant Facility ............................................................................................................. 47

Communication and Information ............................................................................... 48

Budgetary and Human Resources, Audit and Evaluation.......................................... 48

5. Outlook and Perspectives ................................................................................................. 50

6.

Statistical Annexes ........................................................................................................... 51

2

Report from the Commission

(Humanitarian Aid Office – ECHO)

Annual Report 20021

1.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 

ECHO’s response to humanitarian crises followed the global development of needs
as affected by natural  and  man  made disasters, with a  continued shift  from Eastern
Europe  to  Africa  and  Asia.  ECHO’s  response  was  channelled  through  114  funding
decisions  totalling €  537.8  million.  This  sum  is  –  again  –  considerably  higher  than
the  Commission  budget  originally  allocated.  The  dramatic  evolution  of  the
humanitarian situation in Afghanistan following the return of somewhere between 1
½ and 2 million refugees and the food crisis in Southern Africa with up to 13 million
people  facing  serious  food  shortages  required  ECHO  to  call  on  the  emergency  aid
reserve  for  an  additional  €  80  million  in  commitment  appropriations.  ECHO  also
started in a timely manner to make contingency plans to deal with the humanitarian
consequences with the war in Iraq. 

ECHO continued to pay special attention to “forgotten crises” in areas rarely visited
by TV cameras. Angola, Chechnya, Uganda, Western Sahara and Yemen are places
where ECHO provided humanitarian assistance to victims who had moved out of the
spotlight.  To  ensure  an  impartial  distribution  of  its  aid  according  to  needs,  ECHO
refined its methodology for identifying forgotten crises.

Another feature of ECHO’s work was to achieve sustainability of its operations, by
trying  to  hand-over  projects  or  lay  the  ground  for  future  linkage  to  longer-term
development  instruments.  Such  implementation  of  a  policy  linking  relief,
rehabilitation  and  development  (‘LRRD’)  was  marked  for  the  phasing-down  of  its
operations in the Balkans. Also, in Sierra Leone and in Angola ECHO’s provision of
humanitarian  aid  became  part  of  an  integrated  EC  Action  plan  to  tackle  the
humanitarian crises and the initial resettlement process. 

New  developments  in  relation  to  crisis  management  matters  under  the  Common
Foreign  and  Security  Policy  as  well  as  in  the  context  of  the  “Convention  for  the
Future of Europe” have necessitated an active response from ECHO explaining and
defending the specificity of the “humanitarian space.”

ECHO  deepened  its  relationships  with  its  major  partners  through  the  so-called
“Strategic Programming Dialogues”. They were held in November 2002 for the third
year running with the main UN agencies (UNHCR, WFP, UNICEF, OCHA and, for
the  first  time,  WHO).  Similar  dialogues  were  held  with  the  ICRC,  IFRC  and  the
NGOs.

In  2002  ECHO  undertook  significant  efforts  to  further  improve  communication,
collaboration and co-ordination with the European Parliament. The EP adopted in
its  plenary  session  on  14  January  2003  the  report  prepared  by  Mrs  Carlotti,

1 

In  accordance  with  Article  19  of  Council  Regulation  (EC)  N°  1257/96  of  20  June  1996  concerning
humanitarian aid.

3

                                                
expressing  the  EP’s  favourable  appreciation  of  ECHO’s  progress  in  effective  aid
delivery,  simplification  of  procedures  and  sound  financial  management  during  the
period 2001-2002.

ECHO enhanced its information, communication and awareness raising activities
during 2002, notably through increased coverage in the mass media and through the
launch of its redesigned website in November..

As  concerns  the  continuous  implementation  of  reform  in  2002,  ECHO  moved
away  from  centralised  to  partially  decentralised  financial  circuits.  The  internal
control  systems  has  been  reoriented  and  further  strengthened  allowing  a  better
assessment of risks related to humanitarian projects and a more efficient monitoring
of progress by concentrating on outputs. 

In  July  2002  ECHO  underwent  an  internal  re-organisation  to  further  improve  the
efficiency  of  the  service,  to  create  new  synergies  and  a  better  distribution  of  the
workload between units.

4

2.

GENERAL POLICY FRAMEWORK IN 2002 

In 2002 natural disasters affected 170 million people and killed almost 40,000. More
than  42  ongoing  wars  and  violent  crises  throughout  the  year  left  behind  a
humanitarian legacy of 37 million uprooted people. Despite the fact that ECHO, with
a  budget  of  €  537.8  million  in  2002,  once  again  was  amongst  the  three  main
humanitarian  donors  world-wide,  global  humanitarian  aid  of  USD  4.5  billion
(OCHA)  remains  only  a  fraction  of  global  military  spending  of  USD  839  billion
(SIPRI Yearbook 2002), obliging the humanitarian  community to  limit  its  response
and to focus on the areas of highest needs.

ECHO’s  response  followed  the  global  evolution  of  the  essential  needs  of  people
affected  by  natural  and  man-made  disasters,  with  a  continued  shift  from  Eastern
Europe to Africa and Asia. Half of the violent crises were located in Africa, hosting
27.5% of all refugees. Asia hosted the largest refugee population world-wide (48.3%
of  all  refugees).  ECHO  succeeded  in  implementing  its  needs-based  strategy,  as
reflected  by  the  regional  distribution  of  its  funding  of  humanitarian  operations:
populations  of  ACP  countries  were  the  biggest  recipient  of  aid  (€  211.5  million  or
39%),  followed  by  Asia  (€  137.96  million  or  26%)  and  by  Eastern  Europe  (€  85.3
million  or  16  %).  New  emergencies,  like  the  one  in  Afghanistan  caused  by  the
accelerated  return  of  somewhere  between  1  ½  and  2  million  refugees  and  the  food
crisis in Southern Africa with up to 13 million people facing serious food shortages
required ECHO to call on the emergency aid reserve for an additional € 80 million in
commitment appropriations. Also, in the context of ‘post 11 September’ international
politics, ECHO started in a timely manner to make contingency plans to deal with the
humanitarian consequences of a war in Iraq. This involved close co-ordination with
Member States, major partners, especially those in the UN and Red Cross movement,
and with other major donors such as the United States. 

Whereas the plight of the Iraqi people, caused by two major conflicts followed by ten
years  of  international  sanctions,  received  increasing  media  attention  in  2002,  other
humanitarian  crises  have  disappeared  from  the  headlines.  ECHO  successfully
continued  its  support  in  favour  of  forgotten  crises.  The  total  funding  allocated  to
forgotten  crises  identified  in  Tanzania,  Uganda,  Yemen,  Angola,  Chechnya  and
Western Sahara reached € 85 million (16% of ECHO’s budget).

Numerous developments in relation to crisis management matters under the Common
Foreign  and  Security  Policy  as  well  as  in  the  context  of  the  “Convention  for  the
future  of  Europe”  have  necessitated  an  active  response.  Consequently,  ECHO
participated  in  various  fora  (Second  pillar  committees  of  the  Council,  EU  Military
Committee etc) and produced documents to explain and defend the specificity of the
“humanitarian space”, to underline the “added value” of the system of humanitarian
aid in place at European level, based on ten years of experience, and to ensure that all
actors  are  aware  of  the  neutral,  impartial  and  independent  nature  of  humanitarian
assistance.

5

3.

OVERVIEW OF ECHO’S HUMANITARIAN OPERATIONS

The  following  section  will  provide  a  country  by  country  account  of  ECHO’s
humanitarian  operations. It  is not  simply an  overview.  The  humanitarian  assistance
provided  reflects  the  implementation  of  ECHO’s  strategy  in  2002,  namely  to
intervene  in  the  areas  of  greatest  humanitarian  need,  to  continue  its  support  for
forgotten  crises  and  to  provide  quality  humanitarian  aid  by  ensuring  that  relief,
rehabilitation  and  development  efforts  are  properly  co-ordinated.  To  highlight  this
aspect and to underline the results-oriented focus of its work, ECHO has chosen to
change  the  presentation  of  this  section  with  regard  to  last  year.  Humanitarian
operations  are  presented  by  outlining  humanitarian  needs,  humanitarian  objectives
and  achievements  as  well  as  efforts  undertaken  to  achieve  co-ordination  with  and
linkage to longer-term intervention instruments. In addition, information is given not
only  on  financial  decisions  but also on  the execution of  these  in  terms  of  contracts
signed and payments made.2

ECHO’s  response  to  humanitarian  crises  around  the  globe  has  been  channelled
through  114  funding  decisions3  totalling  €  537.8  million.  The  rate  of  budget
implementation  in  terms  of  commitment  appropriations  reached  100%  in  the  5th
consecutive  year.  798  contracts  for  humanitarian  operations  covering  projects  in
more  than  60  countries  were  signed  in  20024.  Implementing  partners  were  non-
governmental  organisations  (62%  of  ECHO’s  funding,  the  large  majority  of  which
are  EU  NGOs),  the  UN  family  (27%,  main  partners  being  UNHCR  (cid:1)10,2%(cid:2),  WFP
(cid:1)8%(cid:2)  and  UNICEF  (cid:1)4,7%(cid:2))  and  other  international  organisations,  principally  ICRC
and  IFRC  (with  7.9%  of  funding).  The  remaining  3,5%  were  mainly  used  for
contracts  such  as  technical  assistance  or  information,  communication,  audit  or
evaluation.

3.1.

Africa, the Caribbean, and the Pacific

3.1.1. Horn of Africa and Eastern Africa

Sudan:

Humanitarian Needs

Affected  by  chronic  man-made  and  natural  disasters,  Sudan’s  highly  vulnerable
populations,  both  in  the  North  (Government-held  territories)  and  in  the  South
(opposition-held  territories),  continued  to  suffer  severe  humanitarian  setbacks  at  a
time when the peace process seemed to be evolving positively. Humanitarian needs
were pressing in all major sector areas, i.e.health and nutrition, food security, water
and sanitation.

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

2 

3 

4 

The fact that small amounts of the 2002 budget are not contracted before the end-2002 can be due to
one  or  a  combination  of  the  following  factors:  delays  due  to  a  volatile  security  situation,  an  overall
duration of decisions of  more that 12  months  (where  some  contracts  are  deliberately  issued  at  a  later
stage),  partners  asking  for  less  funds  than  expected  at  the  time  of  the  decision,  unspent  reserves  or
decision dates very late in the year.
Type  of  decisions:  Primary  Emergency:  1  –  Emergency:  21  –  Global  Plan:  10  –  Humanitarian
Aid/Dipecho: 82
Including contracts implementing 2001 decisions

6

                                                
The objective of preventing the further deterioration of the most vulnerable segments
of the population, with a particular focus on IDPs (about 4 million countrywide), has
been  met  through  a  wide  variety  of  interventions  in  the  above-mentioned  areas,  as
well  as  through  providing  support  to  logistics,  co-ordination  and  security  of
humanitarian operations, etc. To that effect, the 2002 Global Plan for Sudan released
€ 17 million, with operations covering  the  North and the South in  a  balanced  way,
through  4  partners.  Health  and  nutrition  interventions  received  the  largest  share  of
ECHO funding. Projects aimed at improving the critical nutritional status of children,
lactating  women  and  other  vulnerable  groups,  and  provided  for  more  and  better
access  to  primary  health  care  facilities.  Specific  disease  control  and  prevention  of
major killer diseases, affecting thousands of south Sudanese, have been undertaken.
Although a finalised health and nutrition impact overview is not yet available, these
projects  directly  benefited  over  2,5  million  people  –  including  malnourished
children,  women,  IDPs,  their  host  communities  and  aged  people.  ECHO  funded
water and sanitation projects in the North reached about 230,000 direct beneficiaries
and  their  livestock,  while  in  the  South,  about  380,000  beneficiaries  were  targeted.
Food security related projects were particularly intense in the South, where the needs
of  more  than  2  million  people  have  been  addressed  through  the  provision  of  light
equipment, tools and seeds, as well as through creating better access to livestock and
livestock products. Efforts have also been undertaken to eradicate rinderpest and to
control other animal diseases.

In  response  to  an  interagency  flash  appeal,  ECHO  issued  an  additional  Emergency
Decision  of  €  1  million  which  provided  for  emergency  humanitarian  assistance  to
newly arrived IDPs in the Kassala region as a result of increased hostilities, as well
as  to  needy  populations  residing  in  previously  inaccessible  areas.  However,  major
limitations continued to be  the  high  level  of  insecurity  in  many  regions,  as  well  as
access  constraints  due  to  both  denials  by  the  Government  and  seasonal  climatic
influences.  ECHO  has  been  actively  advocating  at  different  levels  for  unimpeded
humanitarian access to the population in need. 

LRRD

Progress on  LRRD  was  very  limited  in  2002.  The  ‘Humanitarian  Plus’  programme
from  EDF  funds,  designed  to  facilitate  the  transition  from  relief  to  development,
although  already  approved  in  April  2001,  did  not  yet  reach  the  phase  of  full
implementation.  However,  the  reactivation  of  the  political  dialogue  between  Sudan
and the EU in 1999 has opened the possibility to a progressive normalisation of the
EC-Sudan relations and consequently to a hand-over of activities in the longer-term
run.

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions

Contracts

18.0

17.0

Payments

11.19

Ethiopia

Humanitarian Needs

7

Although  some  pockets  of  acute  needs  remained,  humanitarian  urgencies  arising
from the border war with Eritrea, and from the drought in the south east, had largely
stabilised later in the year.Further, with the continued improvement of conditions in
northwestern Somalia, the needs of the Somali refugees from this area changed from
care and maintenance to assistance with repatriation. 

As in 2001, there was a large scale meningitis epidemic, and rains were much poorer
than usual. The shortage of rains led to growing concern towards the end of the year
about the effects of a major new large scale drought in parts of Somali, Oromiya and
Afar regions. The effects on food production and food availability countrywide led to
an  acute  deterioration  of  already  chronic  malnutrition  problems,  with  reports  of
global  acute  malnutrition  as  high  as  29%  in  some  areas.  In  addition,  substantial
losses of livestock were reported, estimated at over 40% in some areas, in pastoralist
and  agro-pastoralist  communities  in  Afar  and  Hararghe,  along  with  growing
problems in securing water supplies.

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

In response to remaining pockets of need following the drought, and to consolidate
the previous emergency response, ECHO provided a further €400,000 assistance for
water  provision  in  Somali,  Oromo  and  Afar  regions,  and  food  security  monitoring
and  early  warning  for  the  drought  affected  Somali  region.  In  addition,  with  the
continued  protection  needs  resulting  from  the  border  conflict,  ECHO  provided  €
750,000 to the ICRC to assist over  7,000 POWs and war related detainees.  For  the
repatriation  needs  of  the  Somali  refugees,  ECHO  provided  1.6  M€  to  the  UNHCR
which has been successfully used to repatriate the 30,000 Somali refugees selected.

In line with its core mandate, ECHO provided € 1 million, with € 785,000 allocated
to  the  MSF  family  for  their  successful  response  to  the  meningitis  epidemic.  This
included  the  emergency  vaccination  of  over  970,000  people,  ensuring  an  average
coverage of about 90% in affected areas, to contain the epidemic. In response to the
onset of a new large-scale drought, a further € 4 million was allocated at the end of
the  year  to  address  needs  of  human  health,  malnutrition  and  water  shortage.  Funds
from this decision continue to be disbursed on a  core mandate  basis as the drought
continues into 2003 and acute needs arise.

LRRD

Having  addressed  the  large-scale  emergency  and  post-emergency  needs  due  to  the
border war and the drought, and the repatriation of Somali refugees, ECHO phase out
in  2002  as  planned.  The  ECHO  office  in  Addis  was  closed  in  June,  having  also
covered the emergency meningitis response, with surveillance now maintained by the
Nairobi Regional Office. Of ECHO’s main partners, about 50 % received following-
on funding from longer term intervention instruments such as food security and NGO
co-financing, 
other
rehabilitation/development donors.

while  most 

funding 

secured 

others 

from 

In response to the new core mandate needs arising from the onset of drought at the
end  of  2002,  ECHO  has  reinforced  the  human  resources  capacity  of  its  Nairobi
Regional  Office  to  cover  Ethiopia.  Both  entry  and  exit  strategies  are  closely  co-
ordinated with other EC intervention instruments, notably the massive EC food  aid
response.

8

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions 

Contracts

7.76

3.29

Payments

1.90

Eritrea

Humanitarian Needs

Emergency needs arising from the border war with Ethopia had largely stabilised in
2002.  Remaining  needs  concerned  60,000  IDPs  in  camps  awaiting  resettlement,  as
well as refugees in Sudan awaiting repatriation.

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

New ECHO assistance in 2002, totalling € 1.75 million, ensured continued provision
of adequate shelter for the 60,000 IDPs, and protection for over 2,500 POWs and war
detainees through the  ICRC, as well as  assistance  to UNHCR  for the  first phase of
repatriation  of  over  30,000  registered  Eritrean  refugees.  €  300,000  of  this  ECHO
funding  covering  mine  risk  education  was  not  fully  implemented  because  the
government chose to take over such mine-related activities directly. Finally, funding
also  included  support  to  OCHA,  including  establishing  sub-offices  in  Debub  and
Gash Barka regions, to facilitate co-ordination of LRRD and assessment of any new
urgent needs.

LRRD

ECHO phase out was implemented as planned, with € 1.75 million allocated in 2002
compared  to  €  7  million  in  2001.  The  ECHO  office  in  Asmara  was  closed  in  June
2002,  with  surveillance  now  maintained  by  Nairobi  Regional  Office.  In  addition,
OCHA was funded to assist the LRRD process. ECHO funding for the first phase of
the  repatriation  of  Eritrean  refugees  is  linked  with  funding  for  the  resettlement  of
these refugees under the EDF.

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions 

Contracts

1.75

0.78

Payments

0.37

Somalia

Humanitarian Needs

Somalia,  particularly  central  and  southern  areas,  continues  to  face  civil  strife,
warlordism and anarchy. Little progress towards political stability has been made in
the country as more than 13 peace initiatives have failed and the vast majority of the
population  continues  to  live  in  absolute  poverty.  The  extreme  insecurity  and

9

unpredictability  has  led  to  the  collapse  of  infrastructure  and  social  services.  Needs
are further aggravated by adverse climatic changes.

Food  security  needs  are  high  due  to  severe  shortages  in  cereal  and  livestock
production. Existing public health structures suffer from a lack of drugs and qualified
personnel  in  all  categories  (0.4  doctors  and  2.8  nurses  per  100,000  persons).  It  is
estimated that 30% of the population does not have any access to health services at
all. The estimated life expectancy at birth is 47 years. Only 15.6% of the one-year-
olds  are  fully  immunised.  The  average  global  acute  malnutrition  rate  for  children
under 5 in Somalia is at 17%.

Water  supply  systems  in  Central  and  Southern  Somalia  have  been  completely
destroyed  owing  to  the  chronic  instability  and  breakdown  of  the  state.  70%  of  the
bore  wells  have  passed  their  designed  life  span  and  require  major  rehabilitation
works.  Less  than  20%  of  the  population  has  access  to  safe  drinking  water.  Recent
assessments indicate that distances travelled are as long as 6 hours only to collect 20
litres of water.

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements:

Against a backdrop of dwindling donor funding, ECHO has increased its assistance.
Compared to 2001, ECHO’s financial assistance to Somalia in 2002 doubled to € 4.5
million. ECHO’s overall  objective for Somalia is to assist the  victims  of  insecurity
and climatic hazards in Somalia with the main focus being on Central and Southern
Somalia.  ECHO  funded  projects  in  2002  addressed  acute  needs  in  the  health,
nutrition, food security and water & sanitation sectors. With 71% of the total budget
allocated  to  health  and  nutrition  projects,  the  financed  activities  supported  a
comprehensive health programme benefiting approximately 1,000,000 Somalis. This
programme  included  primary  health  care,  referral  hospitals,  therapeutic  feeding,
immunisation  and  cholera  control.  A  fully  functional  Primary  Health  Care  Center
(PHCC)  was  set  up  in  north  Mogadishu  and  three  hospitals  were  supported  with
medicines and medical equipment in Mogadishu North & South and in Bay region to
cater for the war wounded and other patients. Timely responses were effective in the
curtailing  of  the  cholera  epidemic  including  an  outbreak  in  north  east  Somalia.
Owing to the failure of six consecutive rainy seasons in Gedo Region, food security
projects  targeting  150,000  persons  were  earmarked 
the  serious
implications of the same to the pastoralist communities and their livestock.

to  address 

In  the  water  and  sanitation  sector,  funds  were  utilised  for  the  rebuilding  of  water
points  in  rural  areas.  11  boreholes  and  30  hand-dug  wells  funded  by  ECHO  have
benefited  55,200  persons  in  Central  and  South  Somalia.  In  North  West  Somalia,
implemented  water  and  sanitation  activities  have  increased  supply  of  safe  water  to
350,000 persons including recently resettled refugees and IDPs in Hargeisa town. As
a  control  measure  in  the  curtailing  of  the  cholera  outbreak  in  Bossaso,  a  sanitation
project was carried out in the IDP camps to improve the hygiene conditions.

LRRD

ECHO  and  the  EC  Somalia  Unit  have  developed  a  joint  strategy  for  project
identification  and  appraisal  to  avoid  potential  overlapping,  duplications  and
differences of approach between projects supported by the different EC intervention
instruments as well as other donors. Agencies are encouraged to share their proposals

10

with the Somalia Aid Co-ordination Body (SACB) before formally submitting them
to the EC to avoid issues such as overlapping and duplications.

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions 

Contracts

4.50

4.50

Payments

2.68

Uganda

Humanitarian Needs

The humanitarian situation in northern Uganda, notably in Acholiland (Gulu, Kitgum
and Pader districts), has been deteriorating for several years due to severe insecurity
caused  largely  by  the  brutal  attacks  on  the  civilian  population  by  the  Lord’s
Resistance Army (LRA). An estimated 1,000,000 people have been  forced  to leave
their  homes  and  to  live  in  camps  protected  by  the  Ugandan  army.  80%  of  the
population  in  Acholiland  thus  lives  in  IDP  camps.  The  displacement  of  the  local
population generated needs in the sectors of water & sanitation, health and nutrition,
food  security,  non-food  items  as  well  as  protection/rehabilitation  of  former  child
soldiers.

The number of consultations and drug consumption in the Out Patient Departments
of  the  4  hospitals  in  Kitgum,  Gulu  and  Pader  has  increased  by  40%.  Due  to  the
overcrowding  in  “protected  villages”,  hygiene  and  sanitary  practices  coupled  with
the  low  water  coverage  contributed  to  the  prevalence  of  diseases  such  as  malaria,
diarrhoea and respiratory infections. As an example, in Gulu district IDP camps, the
latrine  coverage  is  18%  and  water  availability  is  in  average  less  than  3
litres/person/day. Owing  to inadequate and  unpredictable  rains,  the  2002  harvest  in
Kotido,  Kitgum  and  Pader  districts  has  completely  failed,  with  some  80%  of  the
yield lost.

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

ECHO’s  response  in  2002  addressed  a  concerted  programme  of  support  to  the
districts’ referral hospitals. Through various partners funding has been provided for
medical teams, essential drugs, generators, water storage and latrines in five hospitals
in Gulu, Kitgum and Kalongo as well as activities aimed at improving the water and
sanitation  situation  where  IDPs  are  concentrated.  Approximately  950,000  persons
were  targeted  through  these  interventions.  20  boreholes  were  drilled  while  5  were
repaired, 6 hand-dug wells were completed, 2,950 latrines and 1,000 refuse pits were
targeted for construction. Non-food items were distributed to 4,800 IDPs. Owing to
the large-scale abduction of children by the LRA, ECHO financed a project for the
protection,  rehabilitation  and  reintegration  of  former  child  soldiers  in  Kitgum  and
Pader  districts.  1,400  children  were  direct  beneficiaries  while  indirect  beneficiaries
were estimated at 10,000 comprising of families and direct neighbours of the affected
children.

LRRD

11

ECHO  assistance  is  closely  co-ordinated  with  other  EC  intervention  instruments,
Member States and other donors through the EC Kampala Delegation.

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decision 

Contract

2.12

2.12

Payment

1.01

Kenya

Humanitarian Needs

Northern Kenya suffered three years of consecutive rain failure between 1999 - 2001.
While the rains in 2001 led to a general improvement of the situation in Kenya, in the
western arable lands in particular, rainfall in northern and eastern districts was once
more  well  below  normal  and  insufficient  for  the  recovery  of  effective  coping
mechanisms.

Lack  of  browse  and  water  resulted  in  numerous  migrations  by  the  pastoral
communities  to  such  of  areas  where  pasture  conditions  were  better.  Increasing
malnutrition  rates  were  reported  in  Wajir,  Marsabit,  Tana  River  and  Mandera
districts. General acute malnutrition in Wajir district was 14.7%, of which 2.9% was
severe. Public health services are suffering from acute shortages of drugs and some
80,000 children were estimated to be at risk of dying from the fatal combination of
malnutrition and infection.

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

In  2002,  ECHO  supported  an  integrated  package  of  drought  relief  projects,  aimed
particularly at the pastoralist communities of northern and north-eastern districts. In
line with its objective to prepare vulnerable communities for future droughts, ECHO
supported a major livestock project. Hundreds of animal health workers were trained
in  vaccinating  and  treating  the  major  livestock  epidemics.  In  the  water  sector,  the
rehabilitation  of  more  than  200  water  points  as  well  as  the  creation  of  local  water
management committees was realised.

LRRD

ECHO  is  gradually  phasing  out  from  its  drought  response  programme  but  will
continue to closely monitor the humanitarian situation on the ground and to actively
encourage development donors to take over for longer-term interventions.

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions 

Contracts

2.5

2.5

Payments

1.12

12

ECHO-Flight

Completing its 8th year of operation in 2002 ECHO Flight continued to provide an
efficient  and  cost-effective  humanitarian  air  transport  capacity  for  projects  in  the
Horn of Africa and neighbouring regions. Having been traditionally orientated very
much towards the Horn of Africa over the past few years, 2002 saw the opening of a
scheduled  service  from  Nairobi  into  DRC.  A  field  base  was  established  in  Goma.
This has greatly improved access of humanitarian personnel and transport of cargo to
projects in Eastern DRC.

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions

Contracts

8.4

8.4

Payments

5.58

3.1.2.

Southern Africa

Angola

Humanitarian needs

The  February  2002  death  in  battle  of  Jonas  Savimbi,  leader  of  UNITA,  and  the
resultant  cease-fire  raised  hopes  of  a  real  peace  for  Angola  after  27  years  of  civil
war. The increased accessibility after the cease-fire, however, lifted the curtain that
had hidden the true extent of the humanitarian situation in those areas of the country
that  had  been  previously  inaccessible.  High  levels  of  malnutrition  and  mortality
figures  well  above  emergency  thresholds  were  all  too  common,  including  among
UNITA former combatants and their families who had gathered in quartering camps
around  the  country.  The  increased  accessibility  of  the  country  also  triggered  huge
population  movements,  with  1.5  million  IDPs  and  80.000  refugees  returning  home
by the end of the year, for the most part to areas marked by a total absence of even
minimum conditions for their resettlement, and in many cases heavily mined. In spite
of  the  cease-fire,  the  humanitarian  caseload  increased,  with  three  million  people
being dependent on humanitarian assistance at the end of 2002.

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

As the scale of the critical humanitarian needs became apparent, it also became clear
that ECHO funding alone would be insufficient. In addition to an initial € 8 million
for  emergency  nutrition,  health  and  essential  relief  items,  and  crucial  logistics  and
co-ordination  activities,  ECHO  devoted  a  further  €  6  million  almost  exclusively  to
life-saving nutrition interventions in the newly-accessible areas (NAAs), including in
the  UNITA  quartering  areas..  After  the  cease-fire,  ECHO  adopted  a  much  more
flexible approach within its interventions in order to follow and quickly  respond to
the  massive  population  movements,  and  continue  to  provide  assistance  to  the  most
vulnerable groups. The efforts of the humanitarian community as a whole continue to
be hampered by extremely poor air and road infrastructure and land-mine infestation.
Mine explosions have caused many deaths and injuries – including to humanitarian
workers – and have left thousands of people cut off once more. By the end of 2002,
42% of the contracts financed by  ECHO  during the  year had been completed,  with

13

most of  the  remainder due to finish by March  2003.  These  projects  have  helped  to
stabilise  the  nutritional  situation,  saving  hundreds  of  young  lives,  to  re-establish
primary health care in areas where it had been unavailable for up to four years, and
have  provided  emergency  relief  items  such  as  blankets,  kitchen  kits  and  temporary
shelter to more than 225.000 people.

LRRD

Following the case-fire agreement, DGs DEV, AIDCO and ECHO prepared a Plan of
Action  (€  125  million)  to  support  the  Peace  Process  by  accelerating  the
implementation  of  existing  relief  and  rehabilitation  programs.  The  Action  Plan
directed  – or  re-directed  -  all  types of EC funding to tackle  the  humanitarian  crisis
and  the  initial  resettlement  process  Furthermore,  an  Emergency  program  (€  30
million, from EDF funds) was adopted in August, to respond to the first phases of the
demobilisation process. This emergency program complements ECHO’s activities in
Angola. 

The Country Strategy Paper for the 9th EDF recognises the central role of LRRD, as
evidenced by the Plan of Action for Angola. ECHO will therefore seek to phase out
of areas where a more  sustainable intervention  is required,  identifying  and handing
over  as  soon  as  possible  to  development  agencies,  whilst  concentrating  on  its  core
mandate of life-saving interventions. 

Angola, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi

Humanitarian Needs

In  July  2002  the  United  Nations  appealed  for  US$611  million  in  humanitarian
assistance  for  Southern  Africa.  Around  13  million  people  were  then  facing  acute
food shortages, diseases, spiralling poverty, water shortages, dire sanitary conditions
and  continuing  deterioration  in  basic  services.  The  appeal  comprised  US$511
million,  or  84%,  in  food  aid  and  the  remainder  in  urgent  non-food  humanitarian
assistance.  Specifically  affected  countries  include  Lesotho,  Malawi,  Mozambique,
Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

While the UN appeal focused predominantly on food needs of the region, it was of
course  apparent  that  the  region  was  suffering  not  just  from  drought-induced  food
shortages.  Long  term  economic  decline,  inappropriate  policies,  and  of  course  the
dramatic  spread  of  the  HIV/AIDS  pandemic  all  contributed  to  what  is  becoming  a
complex and protracted crisis. Already one in three adults is infected by HIV/AIDS.
Life  expectancy  at  birth  had  fallen  by  20  years  or  more  in  1998  for  most  of  the
countries in the region and had fallen  to less than 40  years for Malawi, Swaziland,
Zambia and Zimbabwe. Of all AIDS deaths in the world in 2001, one in six occurred
in Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe. 

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

Based  on  preliminary  indications  of  humanitarian  needs  in  the  region,  ECHO  had
already committed €6.5 million in emergency assistance during the first half of 2002
to Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The assistance specifically financed operations in
support  of  nutritional  surveillance,  school-feeding,  supplementary 
feeding,
therapeutic  feeding  and  health-care.  An  additional  amount  of  €1  million  was  made
available to combat urgent locust problems in Madagascar.

14

Following  the  UN  appeal,  ECHO  quickly  mobilised  an  additional  €30  million  in
September  of  2002.  The  additional  allocation  benefited  operations  in  Zimbabwe
(€13.7  million),  Zambia  (€9  million),  Malawi  (€2.7  million),  Swaziland  (€1.4
million)  and  Angola  (€2  million).  The  financing  benefits  greatly  expanded  school-
feeding operations in Zimbabwe and Swaziland, meeting nutritional needs, but also
keeping  children  in  school.  ECHO  also  directly  supports  the  UN  and  OCHA  in
humanitarian  co-ordination.  The  World  Food  Programme  receives  support  in  terms
of logistical assistance and monitoring, ensuring politically neutral food distribution.
Zambia  operations  support  operations  in  the  refugee  camps  and  preparations  for
repatriation of some 300,000 Angolan refugees. In Angola, the ECHO assistance is
benefiting operations in the newly accessible areas, supporting the daunting tasks of
resettling millions of displaced persons and returning refugees.

Also in September 2002, ECHO deployed a senior technical adviser from the Nairobi
regional office to Harare in support of operations and to set up an ECHO office.  In
November,  ECHO  appointed  a  permanent  technical  adviser  for  Harare  and
completed the recruitment of local staff. Plans for 2003 include the expansion of this
office in support of expanded operations in the region. 

While it is too early to assess the full impact of the ECHO operations, it is clear that
ECHO’s assistance has already had crucial life-saving impact. 

LRRD

The  ECHO  assistance  to  Southern  Africa  is  complementary  to  the  EDF  funds
available  for  Southern  Africa,  including  the  previous  EDF  funds  for  Zimbabwe
which  are  now  exclusively  targeting  assistance  that  is  directly  beneficial  to  the
population  of  Zimbabwe.  Furthermore,  there  has  been  detailed  and  frequent
consultation with the other Commission services in charge of emergency food aid, to
ensure that the ECHO assistance complements these other forms of assistance to the
region.

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions

Contracts

Payments

Country/R
egion

Angola

12.00

12.00

Malawi

1.50

Zimbabwe

2.00

Zambia

3.00

1.50

2.00

2.34

Southern
Africa

30.00

20.00

7.40

1.04

1.42

1.78

6.63

15

3.1.3. Central Africa

Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)

Humanitarian Needs

In  the  Democratic  Republic  of  Congo  (DRC)  ECHO  was  confronted  with  a  nation
already  structurally  impoverished  by  decades  of  corruption  and  mismanagement
under the Mobutu regime which also had to contend with the cumulative effects of
two successive civil wars. A survey by the US NGO International Rescue Committee
(IRC) indicated a total “excess mortality” in Eastern DRC of 2.5 million deaths in the
33 months between August 1998 and April 2001. However, only about 14% of IRC’s
“excess mortality” were caused directly by violence, the rest being attributed to the
steady  deterioration  of  living  conditions  and  social  services  over  several  decades.
The Congolese in 2002 were dying not from the bullet or machete wounds, but from
malaria and malnutrition, because of the disrupted food production and distribution
mechanisms or the lack of basic healthcare.

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

In  terms  of  humanitarian  response,  it  was  helpful  to  distinguish  between  (a)  the
chronic/acute needs  generated by  the  long-term  crises  and  the  becalmed  "big  war",
and  (b)  the  acute/emergency  needs  generated  by  the  ongoing  “little  wars”.  The
humanitarian  priorities  in  areas  of  chronic  needs  were  to  re-establish  or  to
consolidate  a  sustainable,  effective  primary  healthcare  system  accessible  to  all
sections of the population, and to provide supplementary and therapeutic feeding for
malnourished  children  and  short-term  food  security  assistance  to  their  families.  As
for the acute/emergency needs, the focus of ECHO was on the immediate threat by
the  “big  killers”,  through  measles  vaccination  campaigns  and  classic  emergency
interventions to combat malaria, cholera and malnutrition. 

ECHO’s humanitarian objectives as laid down in the 2002 DRC Global Plan were all
successfully  met,  with  full  disbursement  of  the  €  32  million  Global  Plan  package
earmarked.  In  terms  of  the  operational  (sector-specific)  objectives,  primary
healthcare was provided through 18 partners in some 105 of the country's 306 health
districts  during  the  course  of  the  year.  Around  2.7  million  patients  were  treated  in
health  centres  supported  by  ECHO  through  the  provision  of  drugs,  equipment,
technical  and  logistical  support,  clean  water  and  clothing.  A  further  ten  partners
provided  integrated  assistance  in  nutrition,  food  aid  and  emergency  food  security
targeting  around 375,000 Congolese in conflict areas. ECHO  also provided support
for  the  special  mandates  of  specific  international  agencies,  and  was  particularly
active  in  promoting  co-ordination  and  the  role  of  OCHA,  playing  a  leading  role  in
the joint donor assessment mission in July. 

In  addition  to  the activities  programmed in the Global  Plan,  ECHO  also  responded
swiftly to the Goma volcano eruption of 17 January. ECHO field personnel were on
the ground within 48 hours, and an additional € 5 million relief package immediately
approved. Emergency water points were established within two days, and family kits
of  essential  relief  items  were  distributed  to  some  100,000  people.  Goma's  main
access roads were cleared, the municipal water system rapidly rehabilitated and free
healthcare provided to all comers for three months. Finally, 3,000 destitute families
(15,000 people) were provided with the means to rebuild homes destroyed by lava. 

16

Finally, in response to a UNHCR emergency appeal, a further € 1.1 million decision
was  adopted  at the  end  of  the  year to  prevent the  closure  of  camps  providing  care,
protection and maintenance to 60,000 Angolan refugees. 

LRRD

The  first  major  LRRD  handover  to  take  place,  in  early  2002,  concerned  a
resettlement  programme  launched  on  a  pilot  basis  in  2000  by  ECHO  in  the  Masisi
region of North Kivu, a traditionally highly productive area which had fallen prey to
ethnic  conflict  and  large-scale  displacement.  Over  €  7  million  was  made  available
under the Programme d'Appui à la Réhabilitation (PAR) and Article 255 funds of the
Lome  convention.  The  second  "tranche"  of  handovers  concerned  the  health  sector.
From  1  July,  some  31  zones  de  santé  supported  in  North  Kivu  and  Orientale
provinces  by  ECHO  were  taken  over  by  DEV/AIDCO,  with  €  9  million  under  the
Programme  d'Appui  Transitoire  à  la  Santé  (PATS)  and  Lome  Article  255  funding.
Finally,  in  the  aftermath  of  the  Goma  volcano  eruption  of  17  January,  AIDCO
rapidly deployed an assessment mission which, working with the ECHO team on the
ground, devised an EUR 4 million package (Lomé, Article 255) for the rehabilitation
of  social  infrastructure  to  dovetail  with  the  work  carried  out  by  ECHO  in  the
emergency phase.

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6/ Sincom) in € million

Decisions 

Contracts

38.10

36.49

Payments

23.06

Burundi

Humanitarian Needs

Burundi  is  part  of  the  Great  Lakes’  inextricable  regional  conflict  lasting  now  for
several  years.  But  Burundi’s  conflict  has  above  all  its  own  internal  roots  based
mainly  on  inter-ethnic  opposition  between  Tutsi  and  Hutu  groups.  The  civil  war
started in 1993 after the murder of the first democratically elected President. The war
is still going on despite a Peace Agreement signed in August 2000 and the setting-up
of  a  transition  government  with  cease-fire  agreements  concluded  in  2002  between
three  rebel  factions.  The  situation  in  the  country  has  not  improved  in  2002  and
fighting continued between rebel groups and Army/ Government. Displacements of
population and influx of refugees in neighbouring countries as well as the destruction
of social and economic infrastructures are the direct consequences of this conflict on
the civilian population. 

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

ECHO’s  objective  in  Burundi  was  to  address  the  basic  humanitarian  needs  of  the
population at risk (displaced people, destitute people, orphans,  women  in charge of
families,  returnees).  This  objective  was  successfully  achieved  through  co-operation
with 20 partners. ECHO response to emergency needs targeted mainly in the sectors
of  primary  health  care,  food  security,  safe  water,  sanitation  and  nutrition
rehabilitation.  This  was  done  by  supplying  essential  drugs  and  medical  services  in

17

areas  where  access  to  care  was  extremely  weak  or  non-existent.  Nutritional
rehabilitation  programmes  in  times  of  food  crisis  and  in  affected  areas  were  also
funded.  Finally,  operations  supplied  safe  water  and  basic  sanitation  facilities  to
displaced people all over the country. ECHO also responded to sudden crises such as
temporary  displacements  in  volatile  areas  (east  and  south  provinces  and  rural
Bujumbura)  and  gave  immediate  reaction  to  epidemics  (meningitis,  cholera).  An
estimated 2 million people have benefited from ECHO funded operations. 

LRRD

LRRD process was pursued in 2002, in particular with programmes financed by the
European  Development  Fund  (EDF)  and  in  co-operation  with  Member  States
especially since several new rehabilitation and development operations have been re-
launched  to  encourage  the  peace  process  and  the  reconstruction  of  the  country.
However,  the  constant  instability  of  the  situation  in  Burundi  continues  to  be  a
constraint for the hand over of ECHO’s activities. 

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions 

Contracts

17.50

15.23

Payments

9.42

Tanzania

Humanitarian Needs

Tanzania has a large refugee population from neighbouring countries, almost entirely
dependent  on  humanitarian  aid  for  survival.  At  the  beginning  of  2002  there  were
495,000  refugees  from  Burundi,  DRC  and  Rwanda  living  in  14  camps  in  Western
Tanzania  under  UNHCR  protection.  This  refugee  population  increased  by  20,000
during 2002. Despite continued attempts to enforce peace agreements, most refugees
were  unable  to  return  home,  while  Tanzanian  law  precludes  self-reliance  and
integration. Humanitarian needs included food,  water, shelter, protection and health
care.

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

ECHO’s main objective was to continue the support that it had provided for several
years to this “care  and maintenance” operation, this being a protracted  crisis  which
no longer ranked as a priority for many donors. The objectives of ECHO’s Tanzania
Global Plan 2002 were met with an amount of € 27 million allocated to international
partners  like  IFRC,  UNHCR,  UNICEF  and  WFP.  Allocations  to  all  partners  were
fully  committed.  Programmes  were  supported  in  the  sectors  of  food  aid,  logistics,
water,  sanitation,  health,  nutrition,  shelter  and  protection.  Over  500,000  refugees
benefited  from  this  intervention,  and  ECHO  was  UNHCR’s  single  largest  donor  to
the  Tanzania  refugee  programme.  The  objective  of  ongoing  monitoring  was  also
achieved. Close attention was paid to the repatriation of Burundian refugees, which
began  in  March  2002,  in  order  to  uphold  the  humanitarian  principles  of  safety,
dignity and freewill during the exercise. Although over 50,000 Burundians returned
(spontaneous and facilitated returns) during the year, continued violence in Burundi

18

and DRC led to fresh arrivals of refugees in Tanzania. Despite the unexpected return
of the majority of Rwandan refugees towards the end of 2002 (over 20,000), the total
number of refugees registered in UNHCR-run camps in Western Tanzania increased
during the year. ECHO upheld the protection of vulnerable groups through child and
gender-related projects. 

LRRD

Some  linkages  for  projects  was  achieved  in  2002  through  intervention  under  the
Special Programme for Refugee-Affected Areas (SPRAA, € 22 million, 1997-2003)
and by Article 73 Cotonou funding (ex-Article 255, Lomé; € 4 million for some of
the 
and
water/sanitation). Furthermore, agreement could be reached on the transfer of some
ECHO-funded  food  aid  projects  to  the  Food  Security  intervention  instrument
managed by DG AIDCO.

environment,  health 

sectors  of 

longer-term 

education, 

camp 

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6/Sincom) in € million

Decisions

Contracts

27.00

25.88

Payments

19.94

3.1.4. West Africa

Sierra Leone - Guinea - Liberia

Humanitarian Needs

The three countries forming the Mano River Union have experienced war and unrest
over  the  last  12  years.  The  humanitarian  problems  of  the  region  are  closely
intertwined and developments in one country often impact directly on the other two.
In addition, an estimated 700,000 people had, at one point, been internally displaced
in  their  own  countries  (500,000  in  Sierra  Leone,  250,000  in  Liberia,  50,000  in
Guinea). The centre of turmoil has been moving from Liberia to Sierra Leone. 

In Sierra Leone, an estimated 75,000 Sierra Leonean refugees had returned since late
September 2000 (UNHCR). Out of those, 58,000 are returnees of concern, i.e. those
in  need  of  humanitarian  assistance.  The  resettlement  programme  of  these  returnees
was  perceived  as  the  highest  humanitarian  priority  and  the  major  challenge  in  the
country.

The humanitarian situation in Guinea has been relatively stable, although periods of
insecurity have  affected its Forestiere  region.  At the beginning of 2002, there  were
still 180,000 refugees in Guinea. Of those, 65,000 lived in HCR administered camps
(50,000 Sierra Leoneans and 15,000 Liberians), whereas an estimated 50,000 Sierra
Leoneans and 65,000 Liberians lived outside the camps. 

IDPs in Liberia were in an extremely vulnerable situation. The local social network,
already strained by many years of fighting and instability, was not able to cope with
the extra burden of an additional 38,000 IDPs that fled the resumption of fighting in
Lofa  County.  These  IDPs  settled  in  camps  in  Bong,  Grand  Cape  Mount  and

19

Gbapolou  Counties.  In  addition  to  that,  an  estimated  35,000  refugees  from  Sierra
Leone were living in refugee camps in Liberia.

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

ECHO  responded  to  the  humanitarian  needs  through  a  regional  approach  with  a
Global Plan of € 17 million targeting the four different groups of people in need (i.e.
refugees, returnees, IDPs and host communities) with varying levels of vulnerability
and  provided  integrated  assistance  (including  the  provision  of  health  care  services,
water  and  sanitation,  nutrition  as  well  as  shelter  and  non-food  items).  In  addition
there  was  also  support  to  the  humanitarian  database  and  mapping  information
system,  food  distribution  and  the  promotion  of  basic  humanitarian  principles.
ECHO’s  humanitarian  objectives  were  successfully  met,  with  full  disbursement  of
the  €  17  million  package  earmarked.  21  partners  including  UN  agencies,
international NGOs and the ICRC have implemented projects in the three countries.

In Sierra Leone, ECHO contributed to the running of four District Hospitals, fifty-six
Primary  Health  Care  Units,  the  nation-wide  Expanded  Program  for  Immunisation
and a survey to evaluate the malaria resistance to chloroquine. In addition, more than
one  hundred  water  points  were  drilled  or  rehabilitated,  three  thousand  latrines  and
more than fifty showers and  washing  areas were  provided in  displaced  and  refugee
camps.  Essential  non-food  items  and  shelter  material  were  distributed  to  uprooted
population  (e.g.  more  than  30,000  blankets  and  sleeping  mats,  50,000  kitchen  sets,
jerrycans, 30,000 bars of soap and 700 rolls of 200 m² of plastic sheeting)

In Guinea, ECHO funds contributed to the provision of an integrated primary health
care  and  water  and  sanitation  programme  which  targeted  an  estimated  37,000
refugees in the camps of Boréah, Nonah, Laïné and Kouankan. Besides that, 75 wells
and three hundred latrines were constructed in other locations. In addition to that, the
population of Guéckédou Prefecture (200,000 persons) had access to primary health
care  and  an  estimated  7,000  children  and  500  pregnant  women  received
supplementary feeding. Finally, following an outbreak of Yellow Fever in Conakry,
ECHO contributed  to  an  emergency  vaccination campaign that targeted 1,5  million
people. This operation was implemented by the World Health Organisation.

In  Liberia,  ECHO-funded  partners  fed  150  severely  malnourished  children  in
therapeutic  feeding  centres  and  implemented  a  programme  to  respond  to  a  cholera
outbreak,  which  put  at  risk  a  population  of  50,000  persons.  In  addition,  ten  water
points,  200  latrines  and  as  many  washing  areas  were  constructed  in  IDP  camps.
Finally, ICRC's protection programme targeted one 100,000 vulnerable populations.

At  year  end  (20/12/2002),  supplementary  funding  of  €  2  million  was  earmarked  to
assist UNHCHR in the repatriation of refugees to Sierra Leone and to provide basic
humanitarian services to Liberian refugees in Sierra Leone. 

Execution rate as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions 

Contracts

19.00

16.68

Payments

10.42

20

LRRD 

ECHO´s LRRD activities in 2002 essentially focused on preparing the ground - with
DEV  and  AIDCO  -  for  the  kick-off  of  two  key  EC-funded  rehabilitation  and
development  programmes  essential  for  LRRD  in  Sierra  Leone:  the  SLRRP
(Resettlement  and  Reintegration  Programme  for  the  200,000  returnees)  and  the
HSSP (Health Sector Support Programme). With the start of these two programmes
in November 2002, the arrival of a Technical Assistant to the Ministry of Health and
the recruitment of a young expert in charge of LRRD at the Delegation, the EC has
made good progress with LRRD in Sierra Leone. 

In  Guinea,  ECHO  handed  over  to  other  Commission  services  some  food  security
programmes  which  were  beyond  ECHO's  core  mandate.  From  December  2002  on
DG DEV/AIDCO have taken over two projects previously funded by ECHO (using
6th  and  7th  EDF  funds),  another  one  is  covered  by  the  NGO  Co-financing  budget
line.

In  Liberia,  DG  DEV/AIDCO  and  ECHO  pursue  a  "continuum"  approach  where
programmes of both Services complement each other. DEV/AIDCO continue to fund
post-emergency projects through funds from Art.255 of the 8th. FED ( € 25 million
for  two  years)  in  the  health,  water  and  nutrition  sectors.  ECHO  complements  this
contribution by targeting uprooted people in and around Monrovia

Côte d'Ivoire

Following  the  attempted  coup  d'Etat  in  Côte  d'Ivoire  in  September  2002,  an
emergency decision of €1,5 mio was adopted. This contribution was and continues to
be  used  to  provide  support  to  several  health  structures  and  will  allow  vulnerable
families to receive a supplementary food ration.

Execution rate as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions 

Contracts

Payments

1.50

1.27

3.2.

Balkans, NIS Countries, Southern Mediterranean

3.2.1.

Balkans

Serbia

Humanitarian Needs

By  2002,  the  situation  in  Serbia  had  fully  entered  a  post-crisis  phase.  However,
critical  needs  remained  as  the  situation  worsened  due  to  growing  poverty  and  to  a
number  of  refugees  and  IDPs  that  remained  significant  (377,000  and  187,000
respectively). 

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

21

ECHO  continued  to  pursue  its  gradual  phase-out  of  the  country  but  maintained  a
sizeable €  37.5 million operation focusing on the immediate humanitarian needs of
the  most  vulnerable  population,  mainly  refugees  and  internally  displaced  persons
(IDPs). 

The main objectives of ECHO’s 2002 operation revolved around three axes: Firstly,
maintenance  of  basic  living  conditions  for  vulnerable  refugees,  IDPs  and  some
extremely vulnerable persons during winter 2002-2003. Secondly, consolidation and
finalisation  of  ECHO  programmes  in  the  health  and  psychosocial  sectors  by
providing basic medical equipment and rehabilitation together with training. Thirdly,
promotion of durable solutions for refugees. These aimed to maximise the refugees’
chances  for  integration.  ECHO  also  maintained  funding  for  sustainable  repatriation
to  Bosnia  Herzegovina  and  Croatia.  Prospective  returnees  were  provided  with  go-
and-see visit opportunities, legal aid and transportation. 

The two decisions that ECHO issued for Serbia in 2002 (€ 37.5 mio) resulted in 47
contracts. 25 are already completed.  Basic basic food and hygiene  items have  been
delivered to approximately 115,000 individuals in the reporting period. 1,200 refugee
families  have  received  support  with  building  materials  and  in-kind  grants,  thus
enabling  them  to  permanently  settle  in  Serbia.  A  further  150  extremely  vulnerable
elderly  refugees  are  being  accommodated  in  rehabilitated  long-term  care  facilities.
Almost  1,000  individuals  have  made  use  of  the  ‘go-and-see’  facility  to  return  to
Croatia and see if they wish to permanently return. 

For the IDPs, an uninterrupted supply of food and hygiene items for 50,000 persons
has  been  maintained.  110  IDP  families  have  been  accommodated  in  private
accommodation and 51 collective centres have been rehabilitated. 

A  total  of  98,000  extremely  vulnerable  social  cases  were  supported  with  hygiene
items  or  fed  through  soup  kitchens.  28,000  residents  in  collective  centres  and
vulnerable cases received combustible material to weather the winter period.

The  €  6.5  mio  aid  in  the  health  sector  was  extended  to  the  entire  Serb  population
through  a  state-wide  programme  of  support  to  the  the  Primary  Health  sector.  A
special  emphasis  was  placed  on  the  Roma  population  to  ensure  its  inclusion  in  the
health care service. 

LRRD

In  all  sectors,  efforts  were  made  to  support  the  LRRD  process  by  ensuring  co-
ordination  with the  national authorities,  other  donors  and  the  European  Agency  for
Reconstruction  as  well  as  the  Commission’s  programmes  on  return  to  Bosnia  and
Croatia. It is too early to appreciate  what results ECHO’s advocacy  for  LRRD  will
yield  as  many  projects  are  still  ongoing.  Prospects  are  good  in  the  health  sector
where the EAR has planned € 9.5 million for 2003 to further strengthen the primary
health  sector.  The  Agency  envisages  support  to  Health  policy  development.  This
suggests involvement of ECHO partners such as UNICEF or WHO which also act as
advisors  to  the  ministry.  There  may  be  other  opportunities  in  income-generating
activities and vocational training. ECHO will continue to seek linkage opportunities
throughout 2003.

FYRoM - Kosovo

22

Humanitarian Needs

From the humanitarian perspective, the major needs in FYRoM/Kosovo during 2002
were related to the aftermath of the 1999 conflict and concerned refugees in Kosovo,
IDPs, returnees and other vulnerable residents of the conflict areas. 

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

ECHO  allocated  €5.5  million  to  FYRoM/Kosovo  in  2002  with  the  objective  of
providing basic assistance to IDPs refugees, minorities and other vulnerable groups
and  facilitating  durable  solutions  and  the  transition  towards  structural  development
activities. In FYRoM, ECHO helped to cover the basic food needs of IDPs with host
families, vulnerable residents in conflict areas and those in collective centres while in
the non-food sector, hygienic parcels were provided for host families and firewood to
families,  schools  and  ambulanta  in  the  conflict  region.  Emergency  rehabilitation  of
schools and ambulanta was ongoing during 2002 as were interventions in the water
and  sanitation  sectors.  In  the  social  sector  community  services  and  confidence
building  measures  were  implemented  in  Tetovo,  Kumanovo  and  Skopje.  With
slightly  over  3,000  Kosovo  refugees  remaining  in  FYRoM,  more  durable  solutions
such  as  repatriation,  advocacy,  local  integration  were  sought  for  this  caseload
through UNHCR. 

There  were  13  projects  run  by  9  partners  ongoing  in  FYRoM  during  2002.
Beneficiaries included 3,500 refugees, 14,000 IDPs and 5,500 social case families. In
addition,  2,500  farmers  received  seeds  and  animal  feed.  40,000  local  population
benefitted  from  water  and  sanitation  projects.  Ongoing  projects  in  community
services  (mental  illness,  child  welfare,  fostering  etc)  reached  around  40,000
beneficiaries.  12  projects  have  been  successfully  completed,  the  last  is  due  to  be
completed in June 2003.

Although ECHO phased  out  of Kosovo at  the  end of 2001, the needs  of  minorities
(around  150,000)  were  such  that  additional  support  (protection  and  material
assistance)  was  provided  through  UNHCR  for  2002.  The  UNHCR  project  was
successfully completed.

LRRD

The  LRRD  process  in  FYRoM  is  less  straightforward  than  in  other  countries  since
the majority of instruments  focus on  institutional  reforms  preparing  the  country  for
the  Association  and  Stabilisation  process  rather  than  on  grass  roots  development.
However, ECHO has pursued  LRRD in  several  sectors.  In the social sector,  the  23
ECHO-established  Babylon  children  and  youth  centres,  which  brought  together
children  (and  parents)  from  different  ethnic  backgrounds,  have  now  been  handed
over to the World Bank. Also in this sector, ECHO’s support to Social Case Families
(SCF)  was  extended  during  2002  to  wait  for  the  results  of  the  national  welfare
reforms which were finally announced by the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy
in early 2003. ECHO has invested a considerable amount in the water and sanitation
sector in fYROM and the last project in  this  sector included the establishment of a
database  giving  details  of  all  ECHO  projects.  These  projects  have  been  developed
with  longterm  development  in  mind  and  the  database  has  been  welcomed  by
government and local authorities and could be of use for the EAR in preparing future
programmes in this sector

23

Execution rate as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions

43.00

Contract

41.62

Payment

26.80

3.2.2. Newly Independent States (NIS)

Chechnya, Ingushetia and Daghestan

Humanitarian Needs 

Three years after the beginning of the second war in Chechnya, the conflict was still
going  on,  with  no  political  solution  in  sight.  Although  the  initial  phase  of  heavy
bombardments  gave  place  to  a  lower-intensity  conflict,  more  than  80,000  federal
forces  were  still  active  in  Chechnya  in  2002,  while  regular  rebel  attacks  continued
unabated.  The  situation  was  still  characterised  by  very  serious  violations  of  human
rights and humanitarian law with the civilian population being the main victim of the
conflict. 

In a context of permanent insecurity where every Chechen family has been affected
by the conflict, there were still a great number of Chechen families displaced in the
neighbouring  republics  of  Ingushetia  and  Daghestan,  as  well  as  in  the  rest  of  the
Russian Federation. Despite increased pressures on displaced families in  Ingushetia
to go back to Chechnya and the closure of one of the tent camps in November, there
were still about 100,000 IDPs in Ingushetia and 5 to 10,000 in Daghestan. 

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

As there was no improvement in the humanitarian situation either in Chechnya or in
Ingushetia and Daghestan, with even a greater vulnerability of displaced people, who
have  exhausted  to  a  large  extent  their  coping  capacities,  ECHO  maintained  its
support to both IDPs and the local population of Chechnya. The total funding (€ 28
million)  was  split  between  Chechnya  (more  than  60%  of  the  total  funding),
Ingushetia  (about  35%)  and  Daghestan  (less  than  5%).  In  Chechnya,  ECHO
continued to fund the provision of water in Grozny, the distribution of basic food in
all  regions  of  Chechnya,  the  provision  of  free  medicine  in  hospitals  and  aid  to
surgery  and  traumatology  departments  of  several  hospitals,  the  rehabilitation  of  a
prosthetic  workshop  in  Grozny,  as  well  as  support  to  four  children  hospitals,  the
provision  of  child-friendly  spaces  in  Grozny  and  support  to  mine-awareness
activities. 

In  Ingushetia,  ECHO  advocated  the  right  of  IDPs  to  remain  there  as  long  as
insecurity  in  Chechnya  prevented  them  from  returning  safely  to  Chechnya,  and
therefore  continued  to  provide  substantial  support  to  them.  Funding  was  used  to
improve shelter, first by replacing worn-out tents and then by trying to build barracks
to  host  those  IDPs  who  were  in  urgent  need  of  shelter;  to  improve  water  and
sanitation facilities in camps and spontaneous settlements; to distribute essential non-
food  items  (bedding,  clothes and hygiene  items);  to  provide  primary  education  and
kindergartens; to provide medical and psychological support, particularly mother and

24

child  care;  to  provide  psycho-social  support  and  vocational  training  activities,
especially for the youth; to provide protection, in particular through legal counselling
and  support  to  IDPs  as  well  as  advocacy  for  the  rights  of  IDPs  and  the  local
population in Chechnya.

In  Daghestan,  ECHO  allocated  funding  for  the  support  of  IDPs  from  Chechnya
through the provision of basic food as well as medical support to a hospital and water
and sanitation improvements in spontaneous settlements. 

Because of the level of insecurity in Chechnya and increasingly so in Ingushetia and
Daghestan, activities, as in the past, have had to be implemented by remote control
by  partners.  Access  to  Chechnya  has  become  more  and  more  problematic,  with
federal and local authorities putting increasing obstacles in the way of the delivery of
aid. In addition to that, new restrictions have been put on the work of humanitarian
agencies in Ingushetia, where authorities have tried to forbid partners from replacing
tents  in  camps  or  building  alternative  shelter  for  IDPs.  Access  to  camps  has  been
problematic  for  some  time  and  the  overall  security  in  Ingushetia  has  deteriorated
towards the end of the year. 

In Daghestan, the abduction of the Head of Mission of MSF on 12 August led to the
suspension of all MSF activities in both Daghestan and Chechnya. 

In 2002  ECHO financed  operations  through 17 different implementing  partners; 45
operations were completed, one was suspended and 61 new contracts were launched.
Some  60,000  IDPs  and  vulnerable  people  were  provided  with  medical  care  in
Chechnya, Daghestan and Ingushetia. The main sector of intervention remained food
distribution.  Basic  food  aid  was  provided  to  some  220,000  IDPs  and  vulnerable
population  in  Chechnya  and  Dagestan.  Specific  food  was  distributed  to  1,000  6-24
month-old children in Ingushetia; daily hot meals to 45,000 primary school children
in  Chechnya.  Approximately.  800  new  tents  were  erected  and  170  barracks  were
built to shelter people living in tent camps or spontaneous settlements in Ingushetia.

Essential relief items were distributed to 20,000 IDP families in Ingushetia (hygiene
and  bedding  items,  fire  wood)  and  to  30,000  IDP  children  in  Ingushetia  and
Chechnya (children's clothing). Up to 1,000 young IDPs in Ingushetia benefited from
the psycho-social support, improvement of skills and vocational activities.

Water  and  sanitation  conditions  were  enhanced  in  Ingushetia  (20,000  IDPs)  and
access to drinking water was ensured to the resident population of Grozny (100,000)
with  special  focus  on  schools  and  health  facilities.  In  Ingushetia,  Chechnya  and
Dagestan,  210,000  people  (notably  children)  benefited  from  mine-awareness
training.  ECHO  also  contributed  to  the  functioning  of  Child  Friendly  Spaces
reaching approximately 1,000 children in Chechnya and Ingushetia.

In  addition,  IDPs,  returnees  and  residents  throughout  the  Northern  Caucasus  were
provided with ECHO-funded protection activities, notably legal counselling.

LRRD

Humanitarian situation did not allow ECHO to pursue the LRRD process in 2002.

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

25

Decisions 

Contract

28.00

16.25

Payment

10.57

Tajikistan

Humanitarian Needs

2002 saw a return to near-normal rainfall levels after three years of severe drought.
Nevertheless, the effects of the drought continued to be felt throughout the country.
Over  one-quarter  of  the  6.3  million  population  required  emergency  food  aid  and
infant  malnutrition  levels  remained  unacceptably  high.  Over  half  the  population
lacked  access  to  clean  drinking  water,  while  the  government  remained  unable  to
provide sufficient basic medical supplies to cope with a high incidence of diseases.

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

For the first time in several years an emergency funding decision was not required. A
12-month € 10 million Global Plan, was adopted on 30 April 2002. The programme
had three specific objectives. The first was to help meet immediate basic food needs,
wherever  possible  while  simultaneously  enhancing  the  food  security  of  the  most
vulnerable  households.  The  second  aim  was  to  reduce  morbidity  and  mortality  by
enhancing access to primary health care, ensuring an effective response to outbreaks
of infectious diseases and promoting community health awareness. Finally, access to
drinking water was to be increased while simultaneously  promoting  the  safe use of
water  in  order  to  reduce  the  incidence  of  water-borne  diseases.  All  regions  of  the
country were covered, but with an emphasis on Khatlon province in the Southwest,
the region worst affected by the drought. 

Some  55,000  people  received  food  aid  (including  15,000  malnourished  children),
while  27,000  rural  households  benefited  from  short-term  food  security  projects.
Access  to  clean  drinking  water  was  improved  for  250,000  people,  while  the  whole
population  benefited  from  improved  access  to  primary  health  care.  17  grant
agreements were signed with 14 partners. No major problems have been encountered
and all 17 operations have either reached or are nearing completion.

LRRD 

2002  saw  other  Commission  funding 
to
recommence activities in Tajikistan after several  years’  absence. The  activities  will
start to come on  stream  in  late  2003/early  2004.  ECHO  strengthened  contacts  with
other Commission services and other donors to promote the LRRD process.

instruments  step  up  preparations 

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions

Contracts

10.00

10.00

Payment

7.39

26

Georgia and Armenia

In the southern Caucasus, despite a scaling-back of aid the previous year, ECHO had
to  come  to  the  aid  of  those  once  more  affected  by  drought  in  Georgia  and  in
Armenia, and then resume its assistance  to the most vulnerable  people in  Georgia,
especially around Abkhazia 

Execution rate as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions 

Contracts

Payments

1.8

0.8

3.2.3.

Southern Mediterranean and Middle East 

Algeria (Western Sahara)

Humanitarian Needs

155,000 Sahrawi refugees live – some of  them  since  1975  –  in  the  desert  in  South
West Algeria. They are victims of a forgotten crisis and of donor fatigue. Their own
resources are very  limited and they largely depend on international aid.  Food,  both
basic  and  complementary  products,  is  their  greatest  need.  Other  major  needs  are
health care, shelter and clothes. 

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements: 

In accordance with its strategy of covering forgotten crises, ECHO provided € 14.34
million via a Global Plan, and thus became the largest provider of assistance to the
Sahrawi refugees.

The objectives are to ensure stability and diversity in the food basket. This has been
widely reached by consolidating the basic food security stock, which was created in
July  2001.  Use  of  the  stock  during  the  implementation  of  the  2002  Global  Plan
helped provide 2,100 Kcal/day/person each month (with the exception of September)
in line with WHO norms. 1,000 T of rice, 1,727.35 T of barley and 517 T of lentils
have already been distributed in the framework of the 2002 GP.

The complementary food products already delivered have also ensured that the food
basket delivered is balanced: 1,437.65 T of milk powder, 408 T of camel meat, 609 T
of dates, and 343 T of vegetables and fresh fruits.

In addition to the 5,000 T of products already mentioned, a further 8,777 T of basic
and complementary food products will also be delivered in 2003 as part of the 2002
Global Plan frame. This will cover basic food needs until the implementation of the
2003 Global Plan.

ECHO’s  assistance  was  delivered  through  6  partners.  The  management  of  the  aid
improved compared to previous years. But ECHO is still not fully satisfied with the
quality  of  the  monitoring  and  has  therefore  sent  recommendations  for  good

27

monitoring  practice  to  its  partners.  ECHO  will  also  carry  out  an  audit  of  the
operations in early2003.

LRRD

In 2002 there did not exist sufficient donor interest for intervention and  linkage, as
this is a forgotten crisis

Execution rate as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6/ Sincom) in € million

Decisions

Contracts

14.34

14.34

Payments

11.35

Palestinian Territories, Jordan, Lebanon, 

Humanitarian Needs

The  humanitarian  crisis  generated  by  the  outbreak  of  the  second  Intifada  in
September 2000 deteriorated steadily. Curfew and movement restrictions contributed
to  raise  unemployment  levels  to  53%  and  brought  about  two  million  people,
representing  60%  of  the  Palestinian  population,  below  the  poverty  line  of  €  2  per
day.  About  1.9  million  people  received  food  aid,  yet  real  per  capita  food
consumption  dropped  by  25-30%.  Shortages  of  medicines,  denied  access  to  health
facilities,  and  financial  constraints  hampered  the  effectiveness  of  the  health  sector.
The need for psychological support, especially for children, increased considerably.
Regular  access  to  clean  water  became  a  daily  problem.  Vulnerable  Palestinians  in
Jordan, Lebanon and Syria were also indirectly affected by the crisis. 

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

ECHO responded to the humanitarian emergency with the adoption of five decisions
totalling € 35 million, more than twice the amount originally foreseen. ECHO funded
operations in all key sectors affected by the crisis: health, nutrition and psychosocial;
water  and  sanitation;  food;  shelter  and  rehabilitation.  Small-scale  economic  and
employment  opportunities  were  also  supported  as  well  as  ICRC’s  protection
activities and its urban voucher program. Finally, the relevant UN co-ordinating body
–  OCHA  –  was  supported  in  its  humanitarian  advocacy  efforts.  Nearly  300,000
people, mostly in rural and isolated villages, benefited from ECHO- funded projects
aimed  at  providing  drinking  water.  Some  1.3  million  people  were  assisted  in  the
health sector. Income generating activities targeted some 10,000 individuals, whereas
food support reached 151,280 people, including 6,145 malnourished children below
the age of five and lactating women. 53,200 persons received psychological support.
558 shelters were repaired. 

Outside  Palestinian  Territories,  the  shelters  of  331  families  were  rehabilitated  in
UNRWA Palestinian refugee camps in Jordan (75), Lebanon (115) and Syria (141),
benefiting  more  than  1,500  individuals.  ECHO  also  funded  operations  in  the  water
and  sanitation  sector  in  favour  of  the  most  vulnerable  Palestinian  refugees  in
Lebanon,  which  include  an  estimated  number  of  40,000  non-registered  refugees
living in unofficial camps and gatherings.

28

In the Palestinian Territories, movement restrictions imposed by the Israeli Defense
Forces  on  both  persons  and  goods  have  also  hampered  the  implementation  of
humanitarian operations and the movement of humanitarian personnel. Some ECHO-
funded  operations  required  a  modification  of  the  contract  including  extension  to
duration, however all were eventually retained. In Lebanon one project in the water
and  sanitation  sector,  benefiting  Palestinian  refugees,  was  abandoned  due  to
problems with the local authorities.

LRRD

Whilst  there  has  been  no  hand-over  of  activities  to  other  Community  financial
instruments, there are three areas where the synergies are evident in terms of LRRD:
the food and health sectors, as  well  as  income  generating/job  creation  activities.  In
the food sector, whilst ECHO addresses the urgent needs of targeted people, the EU
Food  Security  Programme’s  main  objectives  are  to  contribute  to  the  longer-term
strengthening  of  the  institutional  framework,  develop  the  rural  infrastructure  and
agricultural  services  and  set  up  a  food  security  information  system.  In  the  health
sector, ECHO funded operations are co-ordinated with the wider support provided in
the framework of the EU assistance to the occupied Palestinian territories. The latter
includes  a  comprehensive  review  of  the  health  sector,  support  to  the  Palestinian
Ministry  of  Health  and  to  selected  hospitals  in  East  Jerusalem,  as  well  as  hospital
management and planning. With regard to income generating/job creation activities,
ECHO’s  positive  experience  is  taken  into  account  in  the  framework  of  the
elaboration  of  the  draft  Country  Strategy  Paper  for  the  West  Bank  and  Gaza  Strip.
The  objective  is  to  target  the  social  sector  by  providing  financial  instruments  in
support  of  activities  that  go  beyond  the  short  term  and  purely  humanitarian  relief
offered by ECHO.

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6/Sincom) in € million

Decisions 

Contracts

35.00

28.82

Payments

15.66

Yemen

Humanitarian Needs

Yemen is among the 25 poorest countries of the world. The country still has to cope
with  the  consequences  of  the  1994  civil  war,  which  opposed  the  North  and  South.
Yemen  has  a  largely  rural  population,  which  continues  to  be  the  victim  of  tribal
tensions and natural disasters. It is estimated that in 2002 only 25% of the population
had access to health services and only 69 % had access to clean drinking water. 

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

ECHO’s main objectives were to improve the sanitary situation of people in isolated
areas without access to primary health care and without access to portable water. In
2002, Humanitarian objectives and achievements

29

ECHO’s main objectives were to improve the sanitary situation of people in isolated
areas without access to primary health care and without access to drinking water. In
2002,  in  the  Socotra  island,  17  springs  have  been  linked  to  nearby  villages  with
tubing,  construction  of  5  catchment  tanks,  and  the  supply  of  20  tanks  to  separate
water for human and animal consumption. This has allowed the provision of a water
distribution network for 55 villages and access to water for more than 11 000 people.
On  the  same  island,  5  tracks  have  been  rehabilitated  improving  access  to  basic
services for 7 000 people. In the Dhala region, 65 000 people living in remote rural
areas  had  access  to  improved  health  services  and  water.  In  the  Taez  region50  000
people  living  in  remote  rural  areas  had  access  to  improved  health  services.  In  the
Taez city, 986 vulnerable people of the Akhdam Community were resettled in a more
secure place. Furthermore, in December 2002 a further € 1,59 million was allocated
to Yemen in order to re-establish access to drinking water for 25 500 persons and to
facilitate access to health care services for 162 000 persons in 2003.

LRRD

ECHO identified Yemen as a forgotten crisis in 2002. Insufficient donor interest did
not  offer  the  possibilty  of  handing  over  humanitarian  activities  to  longer  term
intervention instruments.

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6/Sincom) in € million

Decisions 

Contracts

1.59

1.59

Payments

23.06

3.3.

Asia and Latin America

3.3.1.

Asia

Afghanistan

Humanitarian Needs 

In  2002  the  crisis  in  Afghanistan  was  the  dominant  challenge  in  Asia.  From  the
Spring onwards, came one of the largest refugee influxes in living memory. Defying
all  predictions,  almost  2  million  people  returned  from  Pakistan  and  Iran,  together
with  a  further  500,000  IDPs  who  went  back  to  their  home  areas.  They  were
confronted  by  a  situation  devastated  by  over  20  years  of  war,  homes  destroyed  or
uninhabitable, fields uncultivated and an absence of even basic infrastructure. 

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

The  initial  focus,  with  an  allocation  of  €  35 million,  was  to  meet  the  most  urgent
humanitarian needs which and to help Afghan refugees in neighbouring countries

As  the  scale  of  the  return  became  apparent,  so  ECHO  devoted  progressively  more
funds to the region, ending with a final figure of € 73 million, more than double the
initial  amount.  ECHO’s  priorities  also  evolved  in  response  to  the  situation,  so  that
finally  there  were  three  overall  aims.  Firstly,  to  maintain  the  sustainability  of  the

30

return  and  thus  prevent  further  displacements.  Funding  was  given  for  the
construction  of  shelters,  latrines  and  water  supply  networks,  emergency  health
interventions and the distribution of seeds and basic non-food items such as blankets
and fuel, together with projects to generate income. Secondly, humanitarian aid was
targeted at victims of the severe drought, then in its fourth consecutive year, enabling
them to stay alive and helping them to avoid having to move out of the area. These
people  were  provided  with  drinking  water,  irrigation,  primary  healthcare  and
nutritional  support.  1,500  wells  were  built  and  repaired  under  ECHO  financed
projects. Thirdly, aid has been given to refugees in neighbouring countries, through
the provision of water and sanitation facilities and healthcare. 

During  2002  ECHO  worked  with  over  40  partners  and  supported  projects  which
helped  400,000  Afghans  to  overcome  their  shelter  problems.  They  provided
substantial  employment  opportunities,  thus  enabling  people  to  survive  by  having
income  and  food  –  a  total  of  4.5  million  man-days  of  work  were  funded.  This
enabled  the  repair  of  1,500  km  of  roads  in  Afghanistan,  300  km  of  irrigation
channels, 13 schools, 10 clinics, 1 hospital and 235 culverts and  bridges. Particular
attention  was  given  at  the  end  of  the  year  to  enabling  vulnerable  populations  to
survive  the  harsh  Afghan  winter  and  assistance  such  as  blankets,  fuel  and  other
essential non-food items was given to more than 1 million people.

In  January  2001,  when  the  country  had  only  just  opened  up  after  the  fall  of  the
Taliban,  ECHO  was  also  able  to  open  an  office  in  Kabul  and  become  operational
well before most other donors.

LRRD

During  2002  major  EU  reconstruction  and  development  projects  began  to  become
operational in Afghanistan. LRRD is well advanced and operational coordination has
started at sector and regional levels. The biggest  concrete achievement  in 2002 has
been  the  upcoming  hand-over  of  health  projects  to  development  instruments
managed  by  DG  AIDCO.  A  substantial  health  component  is  included  in  the
Commission’s National Indicative Programme for Afghanistan in 2003. The second
concerns  the  reintegration  of  returnees.  ECHO  deals  with  all  humanitarian  issues
starting  from  repatriation  up  to  shelter  while  AIDCO  is  doing  the  long-term
assistance through rural recovery. 

Execution rate as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions s

Contract

73.25

73.04

Payment

42.85

Iraq

Humanitarian Needs

After  two  major  conflicts  –  the  Iran-Iraq  war  and  the  Gulf  war  –  and  12  years  of
international  sanctions,  a  formerly  prosperous  country  has  fallen  into  ruin.  Even
before the US-led military intervention in Iraq, the humanitarian needs in the country

31

were staggering. One in eight children dies before the age of five, 20%  of children
under five are underweight and one in twelve suffers from acute malnutrition.

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

Even before the war in Iraq, ECHO had for some time been the largest single donor
of international humanitarian aid, providing over € 150 million since 1992. In 2002 €
13 million were given to alleviate the suffering  of the  Iraqi  people, complementing
the UN’s ‘Oil for Food’ programme, which allows the Iraqi government to sell oil in
return  for  food  and  other  basic  supplies.  ECHO’s  emphasis  has  been  on  providing
health care, clean water and sanitation in the Centre and South of the country, where
the  needs  are  greatest  and  close  to  reaching  around  7  million  Iraqis  (half  of  them
children).

By  the  end  of  2002  most  of  ECHO-funded  operations,  implemented  by  9  different
partners, were still ongoing and most were at a relatively advanced stage by then. As
a  result  of  ECHO  funding,  95%  of  Iraqi  children  under  5  years  old  had  been
vaccinated  against  poliomyelitis  and  25  flooded  primary  schools  have  been  totally
rehabilitated.  On  the  health  side,  the  only  paediatric  hospital  in  the  North  of  Iraq
received equipment to enable it to set up a post-surgical unit. The rehabilitation of 8
anti-tuberculosis  centres  and  the  National  Blood  Centre  in  Baghdad  was  almost
completed and the rehabilitation of several hospitals and primary healthcare centres
in  the  Centre  and  South  of  Iraq  was  well  advanced.  In  the  field  of  water  and
sanitation, rehabilitation work had begun on two sewage plants in Baghdad, several
water treatment plants  and  compact  purification  units  along  with  the  installation  of
water supply networks in several towns.

LRRD

The political situation did not allow ECHO to pursue the LRRD process in 2002.

Execution rate as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions 

Contracts

13.00

13.00

Payments

10.30

North Korea

Humanitarian Needs

The third major humanitarian crisis in Asia in 2002 was in North Korea. Here there
has  been  an  inexorable  decline  in  economic  and  social  conditions  over  the  past
decade,  with  a  drastic  reduction  in  supplies  of  food,  water  and  medicines.
Malnutrition and preventable diseases have mushroomed, especially among children:
UNICEF  found  that  21%  are  underweight,  42%  are  suffering  from  chronic
malnutrition and 9% from acute malnutrition. Humanitarian agencies have not found
it easy to work in the country, but there have been steady improvements in operating
conditions, and there is ongoing dialogue with the government over better access to
beneficiaries, freedom to monitor projects and to conduct surveys and identification
of the most vulnerable groups.

32

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

ECHO  is  the  major  humanitarian  donor  in  North  Korea.  In  2002  it  provided
nutritional support and supplied 1,762 health centres with equipment and drugs in the
most  needy  parts  of  the  country,  while  around  250,000  people  benefited  from
improvements  to  water  and  sewerage  systems.  Also,  emergency  aid  was  given  to
meet  the  immediate  needs  of  some  22,500  people  after  summer  floods  caused
widespread damage in the West of the country. Of the € 21 million allocated to North
Korea, € 9.5 million was channelled through the World Food Programme towards the
end of the year to provide emergency food aid after the withdrawal of United States
funding  from  the  WFP  in  North  Korea.  This  kept  alive  over  2  million  women,
children and very vulnerable people by supplying them with 47,000 tons of wheat.

LRRD

The political situation did not allow ECHO to pursue the LRRD process in 2002

Execution rate as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions 

Contracts

21.02

21.00

Payments

16.41

Sri Lanka

Humanitarian Needs

The  cease-fire  signed  between  the  government  and  Tamil  separatists  signed  in
February  has  ushered  in  a  new  peace  process  and  enabled  over  230,000  people
displaced  by  the  civil  war  to  return  to  their  homes.  Families  are  unable  to  feed
themselves as they are returning to towns and villages whose infrastructure, in terms
of shelter, water and sanitation has been destroyed. A major problem encountered by
returnees  is  access  to  land  for  cultivation  which,  when  it  is  available,  may  be
impaired by the  presence  of  landmines. Furthermore, the  North  and  the East  of the
country are lacking in health professionals and medical supplies. 

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements 

ECHO’s initial allocation of €4 million was increased to €8.3 million to support the
regular  flow  of  returnees.  To  help  them  establish  themselves  back  in  their  home
areas, ECHO financed integrated programmes and provided non-food relief items for
12,000  vulnerable  returnee  families.  650  shelters  were  erected,  350  wells  and  300
latrines rehabilitated  or  constructed,  and 6 irrigation  ponds  renovated.  These  multi-
sectoral  schemes  have  an  important  food  security  component  which  enabled  9,200
farmers  and  craftsmen  and  500  fishermen  to  receive  employment-related  kits,
including  seeds,  fertiliser,  poultry,  agricultural  and  craft  tools  and  fishing  nets.  To
help  deal  with  the  estimated  1,000,000  unexploded  mines  in  the  former  conflict
zones, ECHO has supported mine risk education, mine surveys and demarcation, for
the  benefit  of  610,000  people.  The  results  of  the  mine  surveys  will  be  available  in
early  2003  and  the  estimated  1,000  mine  victims  in  2002,  although  still  too  high,
remained  at  the  same  level  as  in  previous  years,  despite  the  substantial  return

33

movement.  At  the  end  of  the  year,  ECHO  also  took  a  decision  to  fund  emergency
mine clearance work, to be implemented in 2003. 

ECHO also provided support until August 2002 for a sea transport link, thus enabling
more than 300 tonnes of medical and other supplies to reach the population in Jaffna
who had been  cut off  from  the rest  of the country. The boat also transported 1,500
seriously ill patients to places where they could obtain proper treatment.

LRRD

A  gradual  exit  of  ECHO  must  be  prepared  for  certain  sectors.  In  particular,  mine
clearance  should  be  provided  by  RELEX/AIDCO  from  the  end  of  2003.  Health
projects will be supported by RELEX/AIDCO in 2004/05. Permanent shelters will be
constructed via a reconstruction fund for the North and East, managed by the World
Bank on behalf of the government, with a RELEX/AIDCO contribution at the end of
2003.  Agricultural  inputs  and  equipment  and  water  and  sanitation  will  be  provided
by RELEX/AIDCO in 2004/05.

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions

Contracts

8.30

8.30

Payments

4.60

India

Humanitarian Needs

ECHO has focused on specific areas where other donors are not active. In particular
activities have aimed to help Sri Lankan refugees in Tamil Nadu, in the South of the
country, and drought victims in Rajasthan, India’s second poorest state. ECHO also
intervened  in  two  largely  forgotten  man-made  disasters:  the  communal  violence  in
Gujarat and the longstanding Kashmir conflict.

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements 

ECHO funded the purchase and distribution of 38 tonnes of nutritional food to 2,200
pregnant  and  nursing  women  and  830  children  under  five  living  in  Sri  Lankan
refugee  camps  in  Tamil  Nadu.  In  Gujarat  180  tonnes  of  rice,  dahl  and  oil  were
distributed  to  50,000  displaced  people  and  shelters,  as  educational  activities,  were
also  provided  to  35,000  women  and  child  victims  of  the  communal  violence  of
March  2002.  In  Kashmir,  about  100,000  people  affected  by  the  conflict,  especially
children, are receiving psychosocial support and protection. A total of €5 million was
allocated,  including  a  decision  taken  in  December  to  alleviate  the  effects  of  the
prolonged fourth consecutive drought in Rajasthan. Here, measures are being taken
to  mitigate  the  effects  of  future  drought;  more  than  100,000  people  will  benefit  in
2003 from the provision of clean water and 350,000 people will participate in food
and cash for work programmes.

LRRD

34

Currently  no  appropriate  development  projects  exist  to  envisage  hand-over  of
activities.

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions

Contracts

5.00

2.00

Payments

0.92

Nepal

Humanitarian Needs

100,000  Bhutanese  refugees  are  stuck  in  camps  in  the  Southeast  of  Nepal,  wanted
neither  by  Nepal  nor  Bhutan  and  totally  reliant  on  food  aid  from  the  World  Food
Programme.  The  intensification  of  the  long-running  civil  war  between  the
government and Maoist rebels has created significant needs in a country already poor
in resources even before the conflict began.

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

ECHO’s  activities  were  extended  in  2002,  with  €3.7  million  being  allocated.
Continuing support was provided, in the form of 5,600 tonnes of rice, pulse, lentils,
peas,  oil  and  salt,  for  the  Bhutanese  refugees.  For  the  first  time,  funds  were  also
given to help people affected by the civil war, with a  focus on  protection  activities
for  harassed  and  intimidated  populations,  re-establishment  of  family  contacts  and
provision of primary health care.

LRRD

Currently  no  appropriate  development  projects  exist  to  envisage  hand-over  of
activities.

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions

Contracts

3.68

2.00

Payments

1.60

Burma/Myanmar and Thailand

Humanitarian Needs

Burma/Myanmar is a crisis with forgotten humanitarian needs in Asia, along with the
Burmese refugees who have  crossed over the border into  Thailand.  In 2002 ECHO
was  more  active  in  these  areas,  granting  funding  of  €9.0  million.  Enormous
humanitarian  needs  are  known  to  exist  in  Burma/Myanmar,  but  tight  Burmese
government  restrictions  make  it  difficult  to  assess  these  accurately.  There  are  now
134,000  Burmese  refugees  in  camps  along  the  Thai  border,  an  increase  of  almost
50% over the past seven years.

35

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

Within  the  constraints  imposed  by  the  Burmese  government,  substantial  projects
were  supported  to  combat  malaria  through  the  supply  of  medicines  to  around  1.5
million  people  in  the  South-east,  North-east  and  South  of  the  country  and  through
improvements to water and sanitation systems in Easter Rakhine state, the dry zone
in the centre of the country and Rangoon municipality.

In the refugee camps in Thailand ECHO continued to give support in terms of basic
food  supplies  to  60,000  refugees  living  in  two  of  the  Karen  camps.  ECHO  also
financed  improvements  to  health  infrastructures  and  supported  health  and  hygiene
training,  immunisation  and  the  provision  of  drinking  water.  The  total  number  of
beneficiaries is estimated at 61,600, including 800 victims of mine accidents.

LRRD

Currently  no  appropriate  development  activities  exist  to  envisage  hand-over  of
projects.

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions

Contracts

8.97

6.88

Payments

4.47

Laos

Humanitarian Needs

Laos is a country prone to floods and droughts. A substantial part of the population
has no access to drinking water or healthcare facilities, and there are localised food
shortages.  Since  1980  the  government  has  been  encouraging  or  compelled  tens  of
thousands  of people from upland villages  to  resettle  in  the  lowlands.  Conditions  in
these new settlements often resemble refugee camps (no access to clean water, food
shortage, epidemics).

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

ECHO provided €1.1 million for vulnerable displaced people and for those who may
have been victims of resettlement policies. An underlying aim was to increase ethnic
minorities’ access to sustainable livelihoods as an alternative to resettlement.

LRRD

No perspectives for LRRD existed in 2002, but in 2003 information will be collected
with a view to hand-over of projects in 2004.

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions

Contracts

Payments

36

1.13

1.12

0.56

Vietnam

Humanitarian Needs

Vietnam is very prone to floods and other natural disasters, especially in the Mekong
delta area.

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

€1.2 million was given for victims of tropical storms, landslides and flooding in July,
for water and sanitation improvements, personal hygiene and nutrition education and
for replenishing depleted stocks of vaccines.

LRRD

Currently  no  appropriate  development  activities  exist  to  envisage  hand-over  of
projects.

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions

Contracts

1.20

1.17

Payments

0.60

Indonesia

Humanitarian Needs

Ethnic  and  religious  conflict  in  the  Moluccas,  Sulawesi,  Aceh,  Papua  and  West
Kalimnantan has caused the displacement of more than 1.3 million people within the
country. The country is also very vulnerable to natural disasters.

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

ECHO was more active than in previous years, assisting victims of natural disasters
and civil unrest. €3.5 million was given for protection, advocacy, and information for
IDPs  as  well  as  for  the  provision  of  clean  water,  sanitation,  health  and  food  for
highly vulnerable groups such as those affected by drought caused by the effects of
El Niño.

LRRD

Ongoing humanitarian needs did not allow a hand-over of ECHO’s activities in 2002.

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions

Contracts

Payments

37

3.54

1.50

1.03

East and West Timor

Humanitarian Needs

35,000 refugees still live in camps in West Timor, which remains part of Indonesia.

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

ECHO continued to support these refugees, with relief aid, nutritional support, water
supplies, health education and support for their repatriation and resettlement. A total
of €1.9 million was allocated.

LRRD

Now  that  East  Timor  is  independent  and  stability  has  been  restored,  ECHO  has
phased  out  its  work  there,  linking  its  former  activities  in  with  development  and
reconstruction projects. Its Dili office was closed in early 2003.

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions

Contracts

1.94

1.92

Payments

1.52

Cambodia

Humanitarian Needs

Post conflict recovery in Cambodia is moving slowly after 3 decades of war,  chaos
and genocide. The refugee resettlement process is still ongoing, with ever more IDPs
as a result of evictions and the search for cultivable land. The former Khmer Rouge
areas  and  battlefields,  now  open  to  the  outside  world,  have  a  lack  of  water,  proper
hygiene  and  food,  as  well  as  having  substantial  mine/UXO  contamination-  civilian
casualties are over 800 per year. UNICEF estimates, that 35-45% of the Cambodians
suffer  from  chronic  malnutrition.  Health  coverage  is  very  weak  in  rural  areas  and
dependent on foreign aid. While the average  rate of child mortality in  Cambodia is
125 per thousand, in some provinces, it reaches 225 per thousand. Cambodia is also
prone to droughts, floods and cyclones.

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

In  order  to  cover  the  humanitarian  needs  of  the  displaced  population,  children  and
people  living  in  remote  areas,  €5.5  million  was  allocated  to  a  range  of  projects,
including  water  supply,  provision  of  tools,  seeds,  drugs  and  medical  equipment,
training  for  health  personnel,  mine  clearance  (there  were  800  registered  mine
accidents  in  2002)  and  combating  a  threatened  epidemic  of  haemorrhagic  dengue
fever. By these measures 160 720 children (0-5 years) were vaccinated and about 78

38

000  persons  in  194  villages  benefited  from  the  construction  and  rehabilitation  of
wells.

LRRD

ECHO’s budget in Cambodia will be progressively reduced, unless natural disasters
require  intervention.  There  is  a  phase-out  from  secondary  health  care  and  from
projects which have reached the transitional phase where other donors can take over.
For example, Belgian Cooperation and DFID are due to take over health projects in
2003-2004  for  Oddar  Meanchey  and  Mondolkiri  regions.  The  process  of  handing
over to development agencies is subject to an ongoing review.

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions

Contracts

5.5

5.34

Payments

3.11

China

Humanitarian Needs

In this vast country ECHO has focused on specific natural disasters in remote areas
where Chinese humanitarian  agencies  are not  active.  Foremost were the  floods  and
landslides in June, which destroyed more than 3 million housing units.

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

€4.5  million  was  allocated  to  deal  with  the  effects  of  national  disasters.  Rice  and
wheat was distributed to 100,000 people reliant on subsistence farming, together with
the provision of clothing and mosquito nets and the construction of hygienic toilets,
water  tanks  and  two  primary  schools.  Support  was  also  given  in  Tibet  to  purchase
8,000  sheep  and  to  provide  food  and  medicines  for  nomadic  people  who  lost  their
livestock in heavy snowfalls.

LRRD

Currently  no  appropriate  development  activities  exist  to  envisage  hand-over  of
activities. 

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions

Contracts

4.45

4.44

Payments

2.32

Iran 

Humanitarian Needs

39

On  22  June  an  earthquake  measuring  6.3  on  the  Richter  scale  struck  a  rings  of
villages in north-western Iran, killing 237 people, injuring 1300 and leaving around
5000 families (25 000 people) homeless. 

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements 

ECHO  provided  €  0.5  million  for  emergency  relief  to  support  the  victims  of  the
earthquake.  ECHO’s  partner  in  the  field  focused  on  meeting  sanitary  needs  by
constructing  10  public  paths  (5  in  Qazvin,  3  in  Hamadan  and  2  in  Zanjan)  and
providing  50  mobile  shower  facilities.  These  measures  benefited  approximately  6
385 people.

LRRD

Given the limited extent of ECHO’s intervention, LRRD was not applicable.

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions

Contracts

0.5

0.5

Payments

0.25

3.3.2.

Latin America

Colombia

Humanitarian Needs

A complex civil war between the government and various guerilla and paramilitary
groups has now been going on for more than 40 years. Each year a further 300,000
people are newly displaced as a result. 

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

Colombia  remains  the  principal  focus  of  ECHO’s  activity  in  Latin  America,  with
€9.2 million allocated in 2002. ECHO funding enabled the International Committee
of  the  Red  Cross  to  provide  emergency  food  parcels  and  non  food-items  to  about
195,000 new IDPs. The living conditions of approximately 17,000 families (85,000
people) were considerably improved through the global assistance that 12 European
NGOs and European National Societies of the Red Cross implemented in more than
100 municipalities in 19 departments of Colombia. This involved nutritional support,
housing, sanitation, access to fresh water, income generating activities, psychosocial
assistance and training. Also, around 25,000 people gained access to basic healthcare
assistance through the mobile health clinics of the French and Spanish Red Cross in
Northern Putumayo, Cimitarra River, Norte de Santander and  Medio  Atrato  funded
by ECHO.

LRRD 

Generally  speaking,  ECHO  provides  support  to  IDPs  in  the  first  year  after
displacement, whereas under the Commission’s intervention instrument in favour of

40

‘uprooted people’ projects are supported  up to three  years,  for  the  strengthening  of
local  capacities  and  the  facilitation  of  the  social  and  economic  reintegration  of
displaced people. In 2002, a UNHCR project supported by ECHO was taken over by
that intervention instrument.

Execution  as  of  31  December  2002  (ECHO  6  /  Sincom)  in  €
million

Decisions

Contracts

9.2

9.2

Payments

4.09

South America (Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay, Ecuador, Brazil,)

Humanitarian Needs

ECHO  intervenes  in  these  countries  in  response  to  specific  natural  disasters  where
there are large-scale humanitarian needs.

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

€1.3 million was given to people affected by severe snowstorms and unusually low
temperatures in July in southern Peru and South-west Bolivia. Emergency assistance
was provide to rehabilitate 500 homes, protect 50,000 livestock and rain local people
on how to respond to natural disasters.

Next door, in western Paraguay, ECHO granted €0.9 million to supply clean drinking
water  and  basic  medicines  to  treat  respiratory  infections,  tuberculosis  and  parasitic
diseases for 32,000 vulnerable people affected by a two-year drought.

Following  the  heavy  rain  and  flooding  during  the  months  of  February,  March  and
April  in  Ecuador,  ECHO  funded  operations  (€  0.8  million)  targeting  about  10,000
families with limited  access  to  safe  drinking  water  in  the  provinces  of  Esmeraldas,
Manabí, Los Ríos, Guayas and el Oro. Additionally about 4,000 families in the same
provinces received support in order to recover a minimum level of self-sufficiency.
ECHO  also  funded  emergency  aid  (€  0.45  million)  following  the  eruption  of  the
Reventador volcano in late 2002.

Relief  assistance  of  €0.4  million  was  provided  to  6,000  victims  of  landslides  and
floods which struck the South-east of Brazil at the beginning of the year.

LRRD

Currently  no  appropriate  development  activities  exist  to  envisage  hand-over  of
projects.

Execution  as  of  31  December  2002  (ECHO  6  /  Sincom)  in  €
million

Decisions

Contracts

Payments

41

3.82

3.82

2.28

Central America (Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador)

Humanitarian Needs

Central  America is  one of the most disaster prone  regions  of  the  world.  More  than
80%  of  the  area  is  at  risk  each  year  from  earthquakes,  volcanoes,  flooding  and
hurricanes. The national capacity for tackling these disasters is limited essentially by
high  levels  of  poverty,  environmental  degradation  and  government  inaction  when
remote areas are involved. Access to safe water is also a major problem.

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

In 2002 ECHO allocated €5.0 million to Central America. Over the past three years
the  usual  rainfall  pattern  there  has  been  disrupted,  causing  severe  drought  in  some
areas and heavy flooding in others, thereby reducing crop yields and bringing about
increased food insecurity. Nutritional surveys were launched in vulnerable regions in
Guatemala,  Honduras  and  Nicaragua.  More  than  400,000  people  in  these  countries
have  benefited from nutritional  complements,  training  in  good  nutritional,  hygienic
and agricultural practices and from improved access to safe water. In particular, the
nutritional  status  of  more  than  50,000  children  under  five  was  verified  and
complementary feeding was given to those in need of it.

In  El  Salvador  there  was  a  follow  up  to  the  previous  year’s  interventions  after  the
earthquake  in  January  2001,  training  people  to  build  more  earthquake-resistant
homes from traditional materials and to become trainers in their own communities.

LRRD

Not  applicable  for  small  scale  one-off  natural  disasters.  For  the  response  to
malnutrition, there is currently a programming exercise with AIDCO Food Security
section, whereby they will strengthen their interventions with direct aid in Guatemala
from 2004 and put in place a regional strategy that focuses on the most vulnerable.
EURONAID intervention in 2003 will be limited to one project in Nicaragua. Central
American states are currently discussing the possibility of putting in place a regional
food fund for emergencies.

Execution  as  of  31  December  2002  (ECHO  6  /  Sincom)  in  €
million

Decisions

Contracts

5.02

3.02

Payments

1.90

Mexico

Humanitarian Needs

42

The conflict between the Mexican Government and the indigenous population in the
province of Chiapas has directly affected around 30 000 people, with 21 000 being
displaced.  These  victims  of  the  conflict  suffer  from  malnutrition,  impoverished
health  services  and  reduced  access  to  basic  housing  services  like  clean  water  and
latrines.

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements:

In December 2002 ECHO provided funding for food rations and medical services for
around 30,000 vulnerable people who had returned home or were still displaced as a
result of violence. This will help to re-establish their minimum living standards.

LRRD

ECHO is in the process of phasing out of this situation and handing over to longer-
term development agencies.

Execution  as  of  31  December  2002  (ECHO  6  /  Sincom)  in  €
million

Decisions

Contracts

Payments

1.00

Cuba

Humanitarian Needs

Between September and October 2002 Cuba was struck by the hurricanes Isidore and
Lili,  damaging  housing  –often  made  out  of  wood  –  of  an  economically  fragile
population. Around 300 000 people were evacuated to more safe regions in the west
of the country.

Humanitarian Objectives and Achievements

ECHO supported the provision of essential relief items, food and drinking water for
more than 30 000 victims, to restore minimal standards of living.

LRRD

Given the limited extent of the disaster, LRRD was not applicable.

Execution  as  of  31  December  2002  (ECHO  6  /  Sincom)  in  €
million

Decisions

Contracts

0.60

0.60

Payments

0.39

43

3.4.

Disaster Preparedness - Dipecho

As well as its regular humanitarian aid projects, ECHO also allocated €8.0 million to
its Disaster Preparedness Programme  (DIPECHO),  helping vulnerable  communities
to  take  practical  measures  to  prepare  themselves  for  natural  disasters.  The
programme is  focused on  the  main  disaster-prone  regions  of  the  developing  world:
South-east  Asia,  South  Asia,  the  Caribbean,  Central  America  and  the  Andean
Community.  Its  overall  objectives  are  to  help  prepare  local  communities  and
institutions,  to  enhance  their  capacity  to  cope  with  disasters  and  to  finance  small-
scale disaster mitigation works.

During 2002 there was ongoing implementation of the three DIPECHO Action Plans
approved in  2001: for the  Andean Community,  South Asia and the Caribbean.  The
eight  projects  for  South  Asia,  in  India,  Bangladesh,  Sri  Lanka,  Nepal  and  Pakistan
mostly addressed the problems created by floods, with a particular emphasis on the
training  of  local  personnel  and  volunteers.  Evaluations  have  shown  that  these
projects are likely to have benefited more than 2 million people in South Asia.

The  Third  Action  Plan  for  the  Andean  Community  (Bolivia,  Colombia,  Ecuador,
Peru and Venezuela) was boosted by an additional allocation of €1.6 million in 2002.
Its overall objective is to help prepare local communities and institutions, to enhance
their  capacity  to  cope  with  disasters  and  to  finance  small-scale  disaster  mitigation
works.  The  operations  in  this  region  were  still  ongoing  at  the  end  of  the  year,  but
already it is estimated that over 30,000 people have  benefited from 400  workshops
and training sessions on prevention, emergency response and first aid.

In  December  a  decision  was  approved  to  allocate  €6.4  million  to  help  vulnerable
communities  living  in  South-east  Asia  (Vietnam,  Laos,  Cambodia,  Philippines,
Indonesia  and  Thailand)  and  Central  America  (Nicaragua,  Honduras,  El  Salvador,
Guatemala  and  Costa  Rica)  prepare  for  natural  disasters.  Projects  include  the
establishment  of  early  warning  systems,  training  courses  for  local  staff  and
volunteers and the raising of awareness.

Execution as of 31 December 2002 (ECHO 6 / Sincom) in € million

Decisions

Contracts

8.00

1.64

Payments

0.82

4.

CROSS-CUTTING ISSUES

4.1.

Contractual relations with partners – FPA

At the end of the year appropriate measures were undertaken to ensure compliance of
the  Framework  Partnership  Agreement  (FPA)5  with  the  new  Financial  Regulations
and implementing rules.

5 

The FPA is the instrument governing the relations between ECHO and the humanitarian organisations
engaged  in  implementing  ECHO-financed  projects:  it  contains,  in  fact,  the  general  principles  of

44

                                                
ECHO  also  continued  to  carry  out  a  wide  consultation  exercise  with  signatory
organisations of the FPA in order to achieve an in-depth revision and consolidation
of the Agreement. A new FPA is expected to enter into  force in the  second half of
2003. It will focus on the idea of “quality in humanitarian aid”. Special attention has
been given to a change of emphasis by moving away from control of resources and
inputs towards planning of  objectives, indicators  and control of  results.  The review
will  also  create  the  appropriate  framework  for  relations  with  international
organisations like the ICRC or IFRC, while the relations with UN will be regulated
by the revised EU/UN agreement. 

In relation to the focus on quality in humanitarian aid, the ECHO's  partners  annual
conference  (Brussels,  14-15  October  2002)  devoted  ample  time  through  working
groups and plenary discussions to the analysis of (1) quality management tools in the
humanitarian  sector  and  their  application  by  the  NGOs,  (2)  human  resources
management  systems  applicable  to  NGOs  in  the  humanitarian  sector  and  (3)  IT
humanitarian  platforms  and  their  possible  utilisation  as  co-ordination  instruments.
This  annual  Conference  was  one  important  element  in  the  process  of  ECHO’s
consultation and dialogue with its Partners in 2002. 

4.2.

Relations with major humanitarian partners and non-EU donors

During 2002 ECHO deepened its relationships with its major partners through the so-
called  “Strategic  Programming  Dialogues”.  During  these  dialogues  ECHO  and  its
partners  discuss  their  respective  priorities  and  strategies  for  the  forthcoming  year.
They  were  held  in  November  2002  for  the  third  year  running  with  the  main  UN
agencies  (UNHCR,  WFP,  UNICEF,  OCHA  and,  for  the  first  time,  WHO).  The
Strategic  Programming  Dialogues  with  UN  partners  were  further  reinforced  by  the
mission  of  the  ECHO  Director  to  the  UN  headquarters  in  New  York  in  December
2002, where she met with her counterparts in OCHA, UNICEF and UNDP. Similar
dialogues were held with the ICRC,  IFRC and the NGOs. Additionally, ECHO  has
participated  in  more  meetings  of  the  executive  bodies  of  the  UN  agencies  than  in
previous years in an attempt to consolidate further the relationship. 

ECHO’s  active  participation  in  the  CAPs  process6  materialised  through  its
participation in the Montreux II donor’s retreat as well as in the preparatory OCHA
meetings at HQ as well as field level. These meetings preceded the launching of the
2002  UN  Interagency  Co-ordinated  Appeals  in  Brussels  in  November  2002  where
ECHO´s Director and ECHO staff presented the Community position. In this context
ECHO  attended  11  of  OCHA’s  field  workshops  (Burundi,  North  Korea,  DRC,
Eritrea, Great  Lakes Region, Guinea,  Indonesia,  Liberia, Russian Federation, Sierra
Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Tajikistan and Ivory Coast).

As United States and EC humanitarian aid together account for more than half of the
world’s  humanitarian  assistance,  well-functioning  contacts  and  good  co-ordination
between  ECHO  and  its  counterparts  in  the  US  Administration  are  of  particular
importance.  In  2002,  a  basis  for  continued  dialogue  and  co-ordination  between

partnership and the conditions applicable to ECHO's grant agreements  for humanitarian operations.  It
furthermore represents ECHO’s pre-selection procedure, in that it allows the Humanitarian Aid Office
to verify the compliance with a number of objective criteria by potential partners.
The Consolidated Appeals Process (‘CAPS’) is a programming process co-ordinated by UN OCHA to
mobilise humanitarian aid for selective major or complex emergencies.

6 

45

                                                                                                                                                        
ECHO  and  PRM/USAID/OFDA7  was  established  during  the  Director’s  visit  to
Washington,  in  April  2002.  This  was  followed  by  the  first  in  a  series  of  annual
strategic dialogues, that took place in October 2002, as well as with regular contacts
between ECHO and the US Administration at all levels, both at headquarters and in
the field. 

On  the  world  scene,  ECHO  started  as  from  September  2002,  to  make  contingency
plans to deal with the humanitarian consequences for the war in Iraq. This involved
close co-ordination with Member States, with major partners, especially those in the
UN  and  Red  Cross  movement,  and  with  other  major  donors  such  as  the  United
States. 

4.3.

Relations with other Community Institutions

The year 2002 also saw the increased presence of ECHO in the European Parliament.
Further  to  the  presentation  of  the  annual  workplan  of  ECHO  and  DG  DEV  by
Commissioner Nielson on  23 January  2002,  ECHO  undertook  significant  efforts  to
improve  communication,  collaboration  and  co-ordination  with  the  EP.  This  was
demonstrated  notably  through  the  Director’s  commitment  to  regular  attendance  of
parliamentary  meetings.  ECHO  participated  in  three  meetings  of  the  Committee  of
Development and Co-operation, two of which were attended by its Director as well
as  in  one  meeting  of  the  Committee  on  Foreign  Affairs  and  Human  Rights.  This
relationship is expected to develop further in 2003, inter alia through an awareness-
raising public event organised jointly by ECHO and the European Parliament. 

The European Parliament expressed its favourable appreciation of ECHO’s progress
in  effective  aid  delivery,  simplification  of  procedures  and  sound  financial
management  in  the  period  2001  –  2002  in  the  report  prepared  by  Mrs  Carlotti,
adopted in plenary on 14 January 2003.8

The institutional relationship with the EU Member States is established by Art. 17 of
Regulation (EC) 1257/96, and ECHO meets with Member States on a regular basis in
the  Humanitarian  Aid  Committee  (HAC).  In  2002,  the  Committee  met  10  times
providing opinions on 36 draft financial decisions and in addition discussing around
60  strategy  and  policy  issues  such  as  ECHO  Aid  Strategy,  Information  Strategy,
policy  papers/initiatives,  evaluations,  statistical  data  etc.  All  the  draft  financial
decisions submitted by ECHO to the Committee received its unanimous, favourable
opinion. 

In addition to the institutional relationship, Member States and ECHO also meet on
an informal basis in the “informal HAC meetings” normally once to twice a year in
the capital of the country holding the EU Presidency. In the informal meetings senior
representatives  from  the  humanitarian  authorities  in  Member  States  and  ECHO
discuss policy or thematic issues of  special  interest.  One  such  meeting  was  held  in
October  2002  in  Copenhagen  where  the  topics  discussed  were  “Civilian  and
Humanitarian Aspects of Crisis Management” and “Lessons Learned and Monitoring
in Humanitarian Work”.

7 

8 

PRM: Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration; USAID: United States Agency for International
Development; OFDA: Office of the U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance
(A5-0433/2002)

46

                                                
4.4.

Planning tools

Planning instruments developed by ECHO in the past were updated and fine-tuned
during  2002.  ECHO’s  global  needs  assessment,  a  statistical  analysis  offering  a
ranking of 130 countries in terms of humanitarian needs, was refined to include data
on  donor  contributions  and  data  on  GNP/capita,  thus  more  accurately  gauging  the
capability of a country to cope with refugee movements. Updating the global needs
assessment  is  important  for  ECHO,  because  this  planning  tool  allows  it  to
demonstrate  that  its  humanitarian  operations  continues  to  focus  on  the  areas  of
greatest humanitarian needs. ECHO furthermore developed an internal entry strategy
paper in 2002, trying to define objective criteria as to when ECHO should intervene
in case of disasters. 

ECHO’s ability to identify the most urgent humanitarian needs depends inter alia on
its  knowledge  of  humanitarian  donations  given  by  Member  States  for  specific
humanitarian crises. While encoding of data relating to Member States’ humanitarian
donations  to  third  countries  was  based  so  far  on  a  paper  circuit  ("14  point  fax"),  a
new  computer  based  application  ("HOLIS  14  POINTS")  now  allows  direct
electronic encoding of such data by Member States, providing automatic notification
of new reports via e-mail. HOLIS 14 POINTS was fully implemented at the end of
2002  replacing  the  fax  system.  This  tool  allows  on-line  query  to  extract  statistics
about  Member  States  humanitarian  donations  through  Internet  and  it  is  also
accessible  to  UN-OCHA,  the  UN  agency  charged  with  co-ordinating  humanitarian
interventions  between  different  donors.  HOLIS  14  points  allowed  to  improve
considerably the exchange of information between the key humanitarian players. 

(LRRD) 

The  year  2002  saw  some  important  efforts  to  put  the  Commission’s  strategy  of
into  concrete
linking  relief,  rehabilitation  and  development 
administrative and management practice in ECHO and in the wider RELEX family.
In  a  common  administrative  effort  ECHO  ensured  that  LRRD  was  better
mainstreamed  into  the  country  strategy  papers  drawn  up  by  DG  DEV  and  DG
RELEX. In addition, ECHO developed a methodology to identify suitable cases and
to  measure  progress  in  moving  from  humanitarian  to  development  aid.  The
methodology basically consists in coding ECHO’s humanitarian operations in respect
of LRRD for the status quo in 2002 and for the objective to be reached in 2003. This
methodology should allow monitoring of progress in LRRD on a more objective and
transparent basis on the part of ECHO. 

4.5.

Grant Facility

As  in  previous  years,  in  2002  ECHO  also  awarded  grants  to  NGOs  and  research
institutions in the fields of training, studies and communication. The total allocation
was EUR 2.8 million. The overall purpose of awarding grants was to complement the
core  activities  of  ECHO  and  strengthen  the  quality  of  aid  operations.  Further,  the
Grant Facility contributed to ensure the visibility of Community humanitarian aid. 

Based on the priorities outlined in the ECHO Aid Strategy 2002, four projects out of
29 proposals were selected in the training field for support to courses on professional
administrative  and  financial  capacity  building.  Four  projects  out  of  10  proposals
were  selected  in  the  study  field  on  management  of  the  security  of  international
humanitarian activities and guidelines on support for refugees and displaced persons.
In  the  communication  field,  ECHO  awarded  11  projects  out  of  the  24  proposals

47

received,  focusing  on  ‘forgotten  crises’  and  also  information  campaigns  targeted  at
children and teenagers in the European Union.

4.6.

Communication and Information

ECHO  made  continued  efforts  to  enhance  its  information,  communication  and
awareness raising activities during 2002,  notably through  increased  coverage  in  the
mass  media  (in  particular,  television)  and  through  the  launch  of  its  redesigned
website in November9. This reflected the priorities for 2002, with more emphasis on
first-hand stories, as well as a user-friendly interactive approach and a stronger visual
identity. By the end of the  year,  the  number of pages viewed daily exceeded 3,000
and the figures were on an upward trend.

More  attention  was  devoted  to  mass  media  outlets,  with  a  view  to  appealing  to  a
broader  public.  A  new  video  presentation  of  ECHO  was  produced  highlighting  its
support for the victims of crises in all parts of the world.

Funding  and  material  assistance  was  given  for  various  television  programmes  on
humanitarian aid and forgotten crises. With support from ECHO’s awareness-raising
grant facility, a television spot highlighting the work of ECHO and an NGO partner
was broadcast 97 times on Eurosport, targeting younger audiences. A further TV spot
covering ECHO and NGO support for the Western Saharan refugees was shown 86
times  on  two  major  Italian  channels.  Funds  were  also  provided  for  a  30-minute
documentary  on  the  humanitarian  situation  in  Afghanistan  broadcast  on  Danish
national television in December.

Additionally,  ECHO  was  specifically  covered  in  two  Euronews  features  each
broadcast 20 times as well as in two documentary programmes aired on France 2 and
Arte.

4.7.

Budgetary and Human Resources, Audit and Evaluation

The  main  achievement  was  to  maintain  and  refine  the  quality  level  of  financial
checks and controls put in place in the recent  years. Despite the high level of risk
that is inherent to operations in the domain of humanitarian aid, these controls have
led to the  reduction  of  risks  to  a  level  compatible  with  the  principles  of  regularity,
legality and sound financial management.

In 2002 ECHO has moved away from a centralised circuit, where the financial and
legal  undertakings  were  given  exclusively  by  the  Director  and  sub-delegated  to
authorising  officers  within  the  finance  unit,  to  a  partially  decentralised  financial
circuit where, under certain conditions, these undertakings are given by the head of
unit/advisor  responsible  for  the  management  of  the  operations.  The  circuits  have
been further revised to comply with the new Financial Regulation and integrate the
ex-ante verification of all  transactions,  both  at  operational  and  financial  level.  This
has  been  accompanied  by  the  reinforcement  of  internal  control  and  introduction  of
standard checklists.

In  February  2002,  ECHO's  management  conducted  an  internal  control  self-
assessment, the results of which  were  fed into the various  internal  working-groups

9 

http://europa.eu.int/comm/echo/index_en.htm

48

                                                
already  established in 200110, each of which deals with specific  aspects  of  ECHO's
reform. ECHO also conducted  a readiness assessment of  its internal control  system
for the move to the new Financial Regulation. This readiness assessment completed
the  risk  diagnostic  by  a  more  detailed  assessment  of  ECHO’s  grant  management
identifying  the  possibilities  to  curtail  risks  at  an  acceptable  level  and  where
appropriate to reduce them further. A risk profile report for ECHO was prepared in
the context of this exercise.

ECHO  has  refined  its  formal  systems  for  the  regular  monitoring  of  financial
management  and  for  the  provision  of  adequate  management  information.  All
relevant  information  is  regularly  communicated  to  management.  This  reporting
includes the key indicators required by the internal control standards defined by the
Commission  (level  of  implementation  of  budget  appropriations,  payment  delays,
evolution of outstanding commitments etc). In all of these areas appropriate reporting
systems were developed and specific objectives defined. 

In order to comply with the Commission wide target of reducing payment delays to
60 days an action plan to reduce and monitor payment delays has been established.
The notion of payment delay has been split up between a delay for the approval of
the  project  report  and  a  delay  for  the  final  payment.  For  each  of  these  delays
guidelines  have  been  established.  A  procedure  for  reminders,  suspension,
cancellation and termination of contracts has been established.  In the same context,
ECHO  could  reduce  the  amount  of  sleeping  commitments  (i.e.  contracts  that  have
not been liquidated  within two  years  after their signature) down to less than 4% of
the  average  annual  budget.  The  introduction  of  a  specific  monitoring  tools,  the
central invoice register, is being envisaged in 2003.

In  line  with  the  new  Financial  Regulations  (entry  into  force  on  1  January  2003)
ECHO  reoriented  its  internal  control  systems  to  better  assess  the  risks  relating  to
projects, and to monitor their progress and effectiveness by concentrating on outputs.

ECHO underwent an internal re-organisation resulting from an internal audit report
on workload of different ECHO units and building on the previous adjustments to the
organigramme  dating  from  2000.  The  main  objective  of  the  re-organisation  was  to
further  improve  the  efficiency  of  the  service,  to  create  new  synergies  and  a  better
distribution of the workload between units.

ECHO-funded  activities  implemented  by  external  parties  (partners  and  contractors)
are  subject  to  financial  audit.  Audit  results  are  important  for  the  successful
functioning  of  the  Framework  Partnership  Agreement,  which  governs  ECHO’s
relations with the majority of its partners responsible for implementing humanitarian
projects.  They  also  include  useful  recommendations  on  ways  of  improving  the
financial and  administrative controls employed by  the  partners  in  managing  ECHO
funds.  In  2002,  ECHO  undertook  a  systematic  financial  review  of  its  partners  in
order to identify those that may not have a solid financial base.

Fourteen audits were completed during the year including six field audits, reporting
on  projects  in  process.  In  addition,  at  year  end  there  were  50  audits  in  advanced
progress at headquarters of ECHO partners, each one covering on average 5 closed

10 

WG  Simplification  of  procedures,  WG  Decisions,  WG  FPA,  WG  FICHOP,  WG  Intranet  and  WG
HOLIS.

49

                                                
ECHO projects, as well  as  15  field  audits  at  various  stages  of  completion  -  mostly
advanced. Generally the audit methodologies were substantially revised for Partner’s
headquarters and grant audits and new methodology determined for the new area of
systematic ECHO Office audits. ECHO experts and staff members were familiarised
with  audit  methodology  and  audit  reports  not  only  by  direct  contact  during  or  as  a
result of audits but also through lunchtime and ECHO expert week presentations. 

The  principal  evaluations  undertaken  and  completed  in  2002  concerned  ECHO
operations in Cambodia and Thailand, DIPECHO in Central Asia and the evaluation
of ECHO operations in favour of the victims of the 2001 earthquakes in India and El
Salvador. 

One of ECHO's major partners, the UNHCR, was also evaluated at the end of 2001.
The UNHCR’s co-operation with the evaluation team and the use of its findings is a
good  example  of  fruitful  co-operation  between  the  two  partners.  The  study  has
contributed in 2002 to the on-going work of tailoring ECHO's principal contractual
tool,  the Framework  Partnership  Agreement,  to  fit  the  relationship  between  the  EC
and the UN Agencies.

Three  studies  not  initially  foreseen  were  undertaken  and  jointly  managed  with  the
ECHO-4 sector for NGO Relations. They concerned Human Resources, IT Platforms
and  Quality  issues  for  NGOs.  Their  results  were  presented  and  discussed  at  the
annual Conference with ECHO partners held on 14-15 October 2002 in Brussels. 

Three studies were ongoing at the end of 2002 but have since been completed. These
concern  the  evaluation  of  ECHO-funded  WFP  programmes,  a  global  report  on
ECHO´s  response  to  serious  drought  conditions  and  an  evaluation  of  ECHO´s
disaster  preparedness  actions  in  South  Asia.  The  latter  will  contribute  to  a  further
overall evaluation of Disaster Reduction activities to be undertaken in early 2003.

Four  planned  global  evaluations  (Disaster  Preparedness,  Sudan,  security  of  relief
workers, ECHO’s response to the needs of specific vulnerable groups in emergency
situations) have been carried over from 2002 to 2003.

As  concerns  follow-up,  the  2001  evaluation  of  ECHO's  activities  in  Sierra  Leone
resulted  in  the  2002  Global  Plan  incorporating  its  recommendations  on  more
effective targeting of women and children under the age of five. After the evaluation
of operations in Colombia, ECHO acted on the recommendation to require partners
to use the logical framework for project proposals.

ECHO’s  manual  for  the  evaluation  of  humanitarian  aid  was  also  updated  and
distributed in 2002 and ECHO’s evaluation database became operational containing
about 70 evaluators.

5.

OUTLOOK AND PERSPECTIVES

In view of the trends and developments described in this report, ECHO will continue
to focus humanitarian operations on its “core mandate”, i.e. to save and preserve life
during  emergencies  and  their  aftermath,  and  will  further  streamline  its  internal
organisation  and  procedures  to  ensure  a  timely  and  effective  provision  of
humanitarian assistance.

50

As  outlined  in  the  ECHO  Aid  Strategy  2003,  the  response  to  future  humanitarian
challenges  will  focus  on  needs-based  interventions,  forgotten  crises  and  quality
humanitarian aid. 

6.

STATISTICAL ANNEXES 

Annexes 1 and 2: ECHO’s budget in 2002 amounted to € 537.790 million (Annexe
1). The total number of humanitarian contracts signed in 2002 was 798 (Annexe 2).
As can be seen from Annex 1, budget line B7-210 with € 509.745 million remained
the  main  source  of  finance,  followed  by  the  European  Development  Fund  budget
with  €  17.475  million  and  budget  line  B7-219  with  €  8  million  for  disaster
preparedness measures. Finally, budget line B-210 A with € 2.57 million was used to
cover administrative management (e.g. studies, training and information activities).

Annexes 3 and 4: Annex 3 presents geographical aid by region, with Annex 4 giving
further details on a sub-regional or country level. Annex 3 shows that ACP-Countries
(39%) and Asia (26 %) continued to be the main beneficiaries of humanitarian aid in
2002, with a large reduction for the Balkans (8% in 2002 against 15 % in 2001).

Annexes  5  and  6:  Annex  5  shows  the  distribution  of  signed  contracts  by
implementing  partners  whereas  Annex  6  further  classifies  signed  contracts  by
category and nationality of partners. Some of those contracts implement decisions of
previous years. The total budget as shown in Annex 6 is consequently higher than the
actual  budget  for  2002.  Major  contract  partners  in  2002  were  non-governmental
organisations  (62  %)  followed  by  the  UN  family  (27%).  As  in  2001,  UN  agencies
benefited from more than a quarter of all ECHO funding. Within the UN family main
partners were UNHCR (10,2%), WFP (8%) and UNICEF (4,7%).

Annex  7:  The  table  in  Annex  7  gives  an  overview  of  projects  financed  under  the
grant  facility.  4  projects  dealt  with  security  issues  of  international  humanitarian
activities  (€  252.260)  and  4  with  professional  and  financial  capacity  building  (  €
307.700). In the communication field, ECHO grants were awarded for 11 projects (€
838.840.)

51

Annex 1:

Financial Decisions for EC Humanitarian Aid by Source of Finance

Source of finance/ budget line 1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

European Development
Fund - Lome IV Art 164 And
Art 254
B-210 A Aid, including
emergency food aid, to help
the populations of the
developing countries and other
third countries hit by disasters
or serious crises - Expenditure
on administrative management
B7-210 Aid, including
emergency food aid, to help
the populations of the
developing countries and other
third countries hit by disasters
or serious crises (1)
B7-219 - Operational support,
Disaster preparedness
TOTAL

46,456,000

3,487,000

7,420,000

37,387,000

83,082,000

2,850,000

20,750,000

17,475,000

3,360,000

4,800,000

2,570,000

640,609,500 646,870,000 427,157,954 472,270,060 721,909,000 478,005,000 510,153,468 509,745,000

5,027,012

6,298,500

7,034,000

8,000,000

7,570,000

7,500,000

8,000,000

8,000,000

692,092,512 656,655,500 441,611,954 517,657,060 812,561,000 491,715,000 543,703,468 537,790,000

(1) Including budget lines B7-210, B7-211, B7-214, B7-216 and B7-217. As of 2000 these budget lines have been merged to a single budget
line B7-210

52

Annex 2 
Contracts for humanitarian aid 1998-2002

Number of signed contracts

1998

1999

2000
2001

2002

1.004

1.068

926

898

798

53

Annex 3 :
Geographical distribution of Financial Decisions 2000-2002
Financial Decisions for EC Humanitarian Aid by Region 2000-2002

ACP-countries

Asia

2000
35%

16%

Ex-Yugoslavia-W. Balkans  20%

Latin America

Middle East, North Africa

NIS
Global 

6%

10%

10%
3%

2001
33%

20%

15%

7%

11%

11%
3%

2002
39%

26%

8%

4%

12%

8%
3%

54

Annex 4
Financial decisions for humanitarian aid
by region in 2002

Decisions in €m
211.150
12.000
0.175
17.500
0.605
38.100
1.500
8.400
1.750
7.750
0.300
2.500
1.000
1.500
0.750
19.000
4.500
30.000
18.000
27.000
2.120
11.000
3.000
2.000
0.700
83.500
2.500
28.000
10.000

Country/sub-region
AFRICA, CARIBBEAN, PACIFIC
Angola
Burkina Faso, Chad
Burundi
Caribbean/Pacific
Congo (Democratic Republic)
Côte d’Ivoire
ECHO Flight
Eritrea
Ethiopia
Gabon
Kenya
Madagascar
Malawi
Senegal
Sierra Leone, Guinea, Liberia
Somalia
Southern Africa
Sudan
Tanzania
Uganda
UNHCR (Africa)
Zambia
Zimbabwe
Other
EASTERN EUROPE/NIS
Armenia, Georgia
Northern Caucasus (Chechnya crisis)
Tajikistan
Western Balkans
(Serbia, Kosovo, FYROM)
MIDDLE EAST/NORTH AFRICA
Iraq
Middle East (Palestine)
Western Saharan refugees
Yemen

43.000
63.930
13.000
35.000
14.340
1.590

Decisions in €m
137.969
73.254
5.500
4.450
1.935
5.000
3.540
1.130
3.500
3.675
21.025
8.300
5.465
1.195
19.646
1.300
0.350

Country/sub-region
ASIA
Afghanistan/Pakistan/Iran
Cambodia
China/Tibet
East Timor
India
Indonesia
Laos
Myanmar/Burma
Nepal/Bhutan
North Korea
Sri Lanka
Thailand
Vietnam
LATIN AMERICA
Bolivia, Peru
Brazil
Central America (El Salvador, Guatemala,
Honduras, Nicaragua)
Colombia
Cuba
Ecuador
Mexico
Paraguay
DIPECHO
Andean Community
South East Asia and Central America
OTHER FUNDING
ECHO field experts
Grants for training and studies
Information
Evaluation
Other

5.028
9.200
0.600
1.248
1.000
0.920
8.000
1.640
6.360
13.595
8.000
1.800
1.350
1.000
1.445

TOTAL

537.790

55

Annex 5:
Distribution of Contracts by Implementing Partners
EC Humanitarian Assistance in 2002 by Groups of Partners
(contract signature year)

EC Organisations
1,5%
Governmental Organisations 0,5%

International Organisations

7,3%

NGO

United Nations 

Others 

62,2%

27,0%

1,5%

56

1,5%

7,3%

0,5%

EURO

327.908

9.472.974

% of total

44.750.811

Annex 6:
ECHO Contracts by Category and Nationality of Partners 2002 (contracts
signature year)
PARTNER CATEGORY AND
NATIONALITY
EC
Subtotal
GOVERNMENTAL ORGANISATIONS
Subtotal
INTERNATIONAL ORGANISATIONS (including ICRC, IFRC and IOM)
Subtotal
NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANISATIONS
5.985.000
Austria
23.899.900
Belgium
18.194.935
Denmark
1.400.000
Finland
84.860.665
France
44.509.796
Germany
4.611.000
Greece
7.120.333
Ireland
47.157.215
Italy
0
Luxembourg
27.726.941
Netherlands
1.914.681
Portugal
38.462.978
Spain
400.000
Sweden
64.468.582
United Kingdom
4.545.000
Norway
4.142.893
Switzerland
450.000
USA
Subtotal
379.849.919
UNITED NATIONS
FAO
PAHO
UNDP/UNCHS
UNHCR
UNICEF
UNOCHA
UNRWA
WFP
WHO
Subtotal
OTHERS
Subtotal
TOTAL

4.121.000
950.000
6.581.000
62.177.000
28.422.000
3.905.240
4.712.000
49.225.090
4.421.000
164.514.330

1,0%
4,0%
3,0%
0,2%
13,9%
7,3%
0,7%
1,1%
7,7%
0,0%
4,5%
0,3%
6,3%
0,1%
10,6%
0,7%
0,7%
0,1%
62,2%

0,6%
0,2%
1,1%
10,2%
4,7%
0,7%
0,8%
8,0%
0,7%
27,0%

9.666.703
608.982.644

1,5%
100%

Source: ECHOSTAT as per 20/02/2003

57

Annex 7
Projects funded under the Grant Facility 2002
Applicant

Project

Studies and networks

CRIC – Centro Regionale
d’Intervento per la Cooperazione
(Reggio Calabria), IT

Bridging the gap. Research project on involuntary
population movements and reconstruction strategy

GRIP – Groupe de Recherche et
d’Information sur la Paix et la
Sécurité, B

Sécurité humanitaire et forces militaires en Afrique
des Grands Lacs – étude de cas

ODI (Overseas Development
Institute), UK

Humanitarian Protection : A Critical Review of
Concepts and Practices

Institut Bioforce Développement
Rhone-Alpes, FR

Quelle gouvernabilité pour les organismes
humanitaires européens?

Grant €

72,870

56,614

87,908

34,865

252,257

Subtotal Studies and networks

Training

COSV – Comitato di
Coordinamento delle
Organizzazioni per il Servizio
Voluntario, IT

Monitoring and Evaluation in Humanitarian Aid :
quality procedures

85,070

Deutscher Caritasverband

Caritas Europa Training on Emergency Response 65,218

OXFAM GB

People in Aid, UK

Subtotal Training

Training and Capacity Building on Accountable
Management of Humanitarian Aid

79,800

Enhancing quality in human resource management
for relief agencies

77,605

307 693

58

ECHO Information - Grant Agreements 2002
Recipient

Country Amount

granted in
EUR

COMITATO INTERNAZIONALE PER LO
SVILUPPO DEI POPOLI (CISP)

Italy

71,423

Rate of
financing
(in relation
to total
budget)
50.0%

HUMANITARIAN AFFAIRS REVIEW
(H.A.R.)

Belgium 90,270

48.6%

DANISH REFUGEE COUNCIL (DRC) -
DANSK FLYGTNINGEHJAELP, (DNK)

Denmark 176,803

80.0%

CENTRE OF STRATEGIC PLANNING
FOR DEVELOPMENT (K.E.S.S.A.
DIMITRA)

Greece

95,000

50.0%

ACTION CONTRE LA FAIM (ACF)

France

51,251

30.0%

TRIANGLE Génération Humanitaire

France

73,210

50.3%

CRUZ ROJA ESPAÑOLA

Spain

106,500

50.0%

ÖSTERREICHISCHES ROTES KREUZ

Austria

71,151

50.0%

VOLUNTARY ORGANIZATIONS IN
COOPERATION IN EMERGENCIES
(VOICE)
MINES ADVISORY GROUP (MAG)

Belgium 31,939

69.0%

UK

10,257

50.0%

MISSION OST

Denmark 61,032

39.7%

Total

838,836

59

Subject

Information campaign on:
"Women in emergencies:
from victims to relief
actors. The role of the
European Humanitarian
Aid"
Three special issues of
"Humanitarian Affairs
Review on: "The 10th
anniversary of ECHO"
(summer issue),
"Forgotten crises"
(autumn issue) and
"LRRD" (winter issue)
Conference on forgotten
crises – Copenhagen 23
October 2002
Youth awareness-raising
campaign on the theme of
"Humanitarian aid at the
dawn of the 21st century"
Visibility event:
Replication of a
therapeutic feeding centre
in Paris and Marseille
(modelled on previous
action)
TV documentary - "A
bridge between two
worlds"
Awareness raising for
young people on
"Children living in difficult
situations due to armed
conflict". International
conference on children
affected by armed conflict.
Public awareness and
information campaign
"Forgotten Conflicts-
Forgotten Victims"
Conference "EU
Humanitarian Aid- the
challenges ahead"
Demining Experience Day
for the media
Documentary for Danish
public TV on Afghanistan
and the results of the
humanitarian efforts of
ECHO and the Danish
NGO, Mission East