REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL Annual report on the European Union's humanitarian aid operations financed in 2018
Date: 2020-01-16
Institutions: Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO), European Commission
Subjects: EU aid, activity report, aid to disaster victims, aid to refugees, emergency aid, financial aid, food aid, forced migration, natural disaster, third country

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 16.1.2020  COM(2020) 6 final  REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL Annual report on the European Union's humanitarian aid operations financed in 2018  
 
 
INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................ 2 

HUMANITARIAN AID OPERATIONS supported in 2018 .................................................................. 2 

Overview of the main humanitarian aid operations supported in 2018 .............................. 3 

Horizontal priorities ............................................................................................................ 9 

Summary of evaluations completed in 2018 ..................................................................... 10 

2018 budget ....................................................................................................................... 11 

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AND SOURCES ................................................................................. 12 

List of partners having signed the 2014 Framework Partnership ..................................... 13 

1 

 
 
INTRODUCTION 

This  report  presents  the  Union's  main  activities  and  policy  outcomes  in  2018  in  the  field  of 
humanitarian  aid,  as  carried  out  through  the  European  Commission.  The  report  is  prepared 
pursuant to Article 19 of Council Regulation (EC) No 1257/96 of 20 June 1996. 

HUMANITARIAN AID OPERATIONS supported in 2018 

Humanitarian crises have increased in complexity and severity over the last decades. Conflict 
remained the main driver of humanitarian needs, while natural disasters continued to result in 
many people needing emergency aid.  In 2018, over 134 million people needed assistance.  

The EU remained one of the largest humanitarian donors, providing relief and support to the 
most vulnerable people through the mobilisation of both humanitarian aid and civil protection 
assistance. However, responding rapidly to emerging crises remained a challenge due to access 
and security constraints.   

The  European  Commission  was  at  the  forefront  of  the  EU's  response  to  crises,  funding 
humanitarian aid operations for more than EUR 1.8 billion (UN humanitarian appeal was USD 
25.4  billion)  in  over  90  countries  with  particular  focus  on  supporting  conflict-affected 
populations inside Syria and refugees in neighbouring countries.  

Promoting principled humanitarian aid and respect for International Humanitarian Law (IHL) 
was  at  the  heart  of  the  Commission’s  objectives.  The  EU  continued  playing  a  leading 
international role by chairing two donor groups: the Donor Support Group of the International 
Committee of the Red Cross, and the Good Humanitarian Donorship group (the latter chaired 
together  with  Switzerland).  Moreover,  the  Commission  chaired  the  global  initiative  Call  to 
Action on Protection from Gender-Based Violence in Emergencies (GBV) until January 2019. 
GBV and Education in Emergencies (EiE) remained major priorities for the EU’s humanitarian 
actions. 

The  Commission  pursued  work  on  resilience  in  response  to  crises  and  fragility  spreading 
worldwide.  In  this  context,  the  Commission  progressed  on  the  implementation  of  the 
humanitarian-development  nexus.  The  peace  element  of  the  Nexus  was  endorsed  during  the 
informal  Foreign  Affairs  Council  for  Development  meeting  in  September  2018,  concluding 
that  the  ‘triple’  (humanitarian-development-peace)  Nexus  should  address  protracted  crises 
through principled humanitarian action. 

The  Commission  continued  to  work  towards  greater  cost-efficiency,  in  line  with  Grand 
Bargain  commitments  between  donors  and  operational  agencies  at  the  World  Humanitarian 
Summit. In this respect, the Commission issued the Guidance Note on the Delivery of Large-
Scale  Cash  Transfers,  which  ensures  that  more  funding  reaches  beneficiaries  and  that  less  is 
spent  on  administrative  costs.  In  this  context,  the  EU  continued  the  roll-out  its  largest  cash 
programme - the Emergency Social Safety Net (ESSN) for refugees in Turkey.   

2 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Overview of the main humanitarian aid operations supported in 2018 

The European Commission intervened in a wide range of crises and disasters worldwide. Some 
of them are highlighted below. 

Emergency Response 

The Commission used a dedicated Emergency Toolbox to respond rapidly to new emergencies 
and  to  seriously  deteriorating  existing  crises  that  could  not  be  foreseen  when  the  Annual 
Financing  Decision  was  adopted.  The  Emergency  Toolbox  contains  four  instruments:  the 
Acute Large Emergency Response Tool (ALERT), the Epidemics Tool, the Small-scale Tool 
and  supports  to  the  International  Federation  of  the  Red  Cross  and  Red  Crescent  Societies' 
(IFRC) Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) 

ALERT  provides  rapid  first-line  funding  for  immediate  response  to  sudden-onset  large-scale 
natural disasters where more than 100 000 people are affected. In 2018, EUR 8.65 million was 
provided  to  respond  to  severe  floods  in  Kenya,  Ethiopia  and  Nigeria,  earthquakes  and  a 
tsunami in Indonesia and the effects of a tropical cyclone in the Philippines.  

The Epidemics Tool provided urgent funding for five outbreaks: Lassa fever (Nigeria), Ebola 
(DRC),  cholera  (Djibouti,  Niger  and  Zimbabwe).  The  amount  disbursed  was  EUR  2.775 
million. 

The Small-scale Tool was used to respond to seven disasters of a total of EUR 2.225 million, 
namely:  Tonga  (tropical  storm),  Nigeria  (refugee  movement),  Nicaragua  (civil  unrest), 
Guatemala  (volcano  eruption),  Laos  (dam  collapse),  Venezuela  (floods)  and  Haiti 
(earthquake). 

The European Commission was also one of the main donors of the DREF, contributing to 39 
operations for a total of EUR 3.9 million, approximately 25% of the 2018 fund.  

The Syria Crisis 

In  2018,  the  Syria  crisis  entered  its  eighth  year.  During  that  time,  offensives  and  shifts  in 
territorial  control  resulted  in  massive  displacement,  casualties  and  tremendous  suffering  of 
more  than  13  million  people.  The  Commission  delivered  life-saving  assistance,  mainly  by 
providing food, medicine, water and shelter. The Commission’s actions benefited populations 
inside  Syria  as  well  as  Syrian  refugees  in  Lebanon,  Jordan  and  Egypt.  The  Commission’s 
humanitarian assistance amounted to EUR 260 million. 

Furthermore,  the  EU  was  involved  in  numerous  international  diplomatic  initiatives,  such  as 
"Supporting  the  Future  of  Syria  and  the  Region"  Conference  in  Brussels,  the  Humanitarian 
Task Force of the International Syria Support Group in Geneva, the Senior Officials meetings 
organised  in  Oslo  and  in  Berlin,  and  other  advocacy  efforts  to  promote  the  respect  of 
humanitarian  principles  and  IHL.  The  Brussels  conference  raised  awareness  of  the  plight  of 
affected civilians in Syria, with pledges totalling EUR 3.5 billion for 2018, as well as multi-
year pledges of EUR 2.7 billion for 2019-2020.  

3 

 
 
 
Turkey  

In June 2018, the EU agreed on providing an additional EUR 3 billion for the EU Facility for 
Refugees in Turkey to support Syrian refugees. Under this second tranche, EUR 550 million 
were  committed  in  2018,  out  of  which  EUR  50  million  for  humanitarian  aid,  mainly  on 
protection  and  health.  This  brought  the  overall  humanitarian  funding  contracted  under  the 
Facility to over EUR 1.45 billion. 

The Facility's flagship humanitarian program, the Emergency Social Safety Net, continued to 
address  basic  needs  and  protection  needs  of  1.7  million  beneficiaries.  This  was  the  largest 
single humanitarian project in the history of the EU. Building on the ESSN, the EU funded the 
Conditional Cash Transfer for Education (CCTE) project since the beginning of 2017, and by 
December 2018 it supported regular school attendance for 517.000 children. 

Western Balkans  

In  2018,  EU  humanitarian  activities  focused  mainly  on  support  to  refugees  and  migrants  in 
Bosnia  and  Herzegovina.  Local  communities  and  international  organisations  provided  basic 
assistance  such  as  food,  shelter,  and  basic  healthcare.  However,  their  capacities  were 
overstretched, and in May 2018 the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina officially 
requested assistance from the EU.  

The  European  Commission  allocated  EUR  2  million  in  humanitarian  aid  in  2018  to  provide 
emergency assistance to address the needs of refugees and migrants. The short-term assistance 
was complemented by a mid-term response of EUR 7.2 million. 

Ukraine 

After  more  than  four  years  of  conflict,  humanitarian  needs  persisted  in  2018  in  eastern 
Ukraine. The conflict affected over 4.4 million people, out of which at least 3.4 million were in 
need  of  humanitarian  assistance.  Restricted  humanitarian  access  and  adverse  political  and 
security  developments  led  to  deterioration  of  the  humanitarian  situation.  The  humanitarian 
response  was  challenged  by  the  high  politicisation  of  the  conflict  and  the  decreased  funding 
allocations of donors. 

The EU and its Member States remained one of the largest humanitarian donor, with a total of 
EUR 232 million of support. The EU continued to provide life-saving assistance to the most 
vulnerable, while promoting a smooth transition to medium and long-term assistance in other 
areas of eastern Ukraine.  

The Yemen Crisis  

Yemen  was  the  largest  humanitarian  crisis  worldwide  with  22.2  million  people  in  need  of 
assistance in 2018. The ongoing conflict, violations of IHL and weak economic situation of the 
country  triggered  the  largest  food  security  emergency  for  20  million  people.  The  Hodeidah 
offensive  launched  in  June  2018  displaced  over  500  000  people  and  further  intensified  the 
crisis. In addition, the outbreak of cholera continued in Yemen.  

4 

 
 
During  2018,  the  Commission  scaled  up  its  response  to  the  crisis  by  providing  EUR  127.5 
million of life-saving assistance to more than 14 million vulnerable people.  

Mali regional crisis 

Armed  conflict  and  violence  increased,  with  continued  spill-over  to  the  neighbouring 
countries,  namely:  Burkina  Faso,  Mauritania  and  Niger.  Some  390,000  people  were  forcibly 
displaced. As a result, humanitarian needs rose, while access challenges remained.  

In 2018, the Commission provided EUR 61 million of humanitarian aid, with a main focus on 
health  and  nutrition,  and  covering  80%  of  the  health  districts  in  the  North.  In  total,  about 
160,000 vulnerable people received emergency food assistance. Over 124,000 children under 
the age of five suffering from Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) received life-saving nutrition 
assistance, and thousands of children benefitted from EiE activities in North and Central Mali. 
Moreover,  the  Commission  provided  food  assistance  to  over  140,000  Malian  refugees  in 
Burkina Faso and Niger, as well as food assistance and EiE to Malian refugees in Mauritania. 

Sahel crisis 

2018 saw the worst food and nutrition crisis in the Sahel in many years. An increasing spread 
of  conflict  and  an  agro-pastoral  crisis  worsened  the  existing  complex  situation  affecting  an 
increasingly vulnerable population.  

The Commission provided emergency assistance for a total amount of EUR 272.9 million for 
the various countries affected. Over 1.1 million vulnerable people received food assistance and 
life-saving  treatment  was  provided  to  more  than  450,000  children  suffering  from  SAM.  The 
EU  has  been  working  actively  to  implement  the  humanitarian-development  Nexus  by 
strengthening  the  resilience  of  the  affected  population,  reducing  humanitarian  needs  and 
addressing the root causes of food insecurity and acute undernutrition. 

The Lake Chad Basin Crisis 

In 2018, conflict and violence continued to severely affect 17 million people living in the area. 
Over 2.7 million people, including 1.5 million children, were forcibly displaced internally or to 
neighbouring countries. Acute food insecurity and undernutrition remained at a critical level, 
with 3 million people severely food insecure.  

The  Commission  allocated  over  EUR  105  million  in  response  to  the  wide-ranging 
humanitarian  needs  in  the  affected  countries.  Significant  funds  were  used  to  provide  food 
assistance,  basic  health  care,  water  and  sanitation,  shelter  and  household  items  for  the  IDPs, 
refugees and vulnerable host communities. The Berlin Conference on the Lake Chad region in 
September  2018  provided  the  opportunity  to  renew  international  commitment  to  support  the 
Lake  Chad  countries.  The  EU  then  announced  funding  of  EUR  138  million  combining 
humanitarian and development assistance. 

Central African Republic (CAR) regional crisis 

The  situation  continued  to  deteriorate,  with  an  increased  spill-over  to  the  neighbouring 

5 

 
 
countries.  Fighting  between  armed  groups  and  attacks  against  humanitarian  workers 
intensified.  More  than  half  of  CAR's  population  (some  2.5  million  people)  were  in  need  of 
humanitarian assistance. Close to 2 million were suffering from acute food insecurity, and two 
thirds  of  the  population  had  no  access  to  basic  healthcare.  About  one  in  four  citizens  was 
forcibly  displaced,  either  internally  or  to  neighbouring  countries  (Cameroon,  Chad  and  the 
DRC).  

The Commission allocated over EUR 33 million of humanitarian assistance to the crisis. This 
included emergency support to conflict-affected populations in CAR, as well as to refugees in 
neighbouring countries. 

Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) 

The  humanitarian  situation  continued  to  deteriorate,  as  populations  were  affected  by  the 
continued  conflict,  forced  displacement  and  the  volatile  political  situation.  The  10th  and 
largest  Ebola  outbreak  in  DRC  was  declared  in  August  2018.  It  was  the  first  to  occur  in  a 
conflict-affected  area,  challenging the  response as community  resistance  was violent  and the 
risk of a regional spread was high. In addition, more than 13 million people were food insecure 
in DRC, twice the number in 2017. Around 4.5 million persons have been forcedly displaced 
in  the  past  years  and  an  additional  800,000  Congolese  have  sought  refuge  in  neighbouring 
countries. 

EU  funding  amounted  to  over  EUR  80  million,  focusing  on  life-saving  assistance  and 
logistical support through its humanitarian air service. Regarding the Ebola response, the EU 
was  working  closely  with  the  Government  of  DRC  and  key  partners,  providing  technical 
expertise, logistic support and financing operations, also in neighbouring countries.  

Somalia 

Humanitarian  needs  remained  high  due  to  the  severe  drought  and  continued  armed  conflict. 
The food security and nutrition situation remained critical with 6.2 million people – half of the 
population – in need of humanitarian assistance. This included 2.6 million internally displaced 
persons  (IDPs)  living  in  overcrowded  settlements  and  exposed  to  protection  risks,  of  which 
300,000 people were forcefully evicted from state-owned property in urban areas.  

EU’s  allocation  of  EUR  89  million  enabled  partners  to  provide  life-saving  assistance  in  the 
form of cash, health and nutrition care, shelter, water, sanitation and hygiene assistance. With 
the humanitarian assistance and favourable rains, the number of severely food-insecure people 
decreased by 54% between 2017 and 2018. Initiatives were made to transition from emergency 
response to a shock-responsive and predictable safety net, in collaboration with development 
donors. The humanitarian situation remains fragile and the needs are above the pre-crisis levels 
of two years ago. 

Ethiopia 

Since  2017,  the  inter-ethnic  violence  resulted  in  3  million  IDPs.  With  an  open-door  policy, 
Ethiopia was hosting one of highest number of refugees in Africa: over 900,000 refugees from 
South  Sudan,  Somalia  and  Eritrea.  Humanitarian  actors  were  concerned  about  the  lack  of 

6 

 
 
adequate assistance to those new arrivals, which led to very high malnutrition rates.  

In 2018, the Commission contributed with EUR 63 million to respond to the needs of crisis-
affected  people  in  Ethiopia.  Working  through  partners,  the  EU  assisted  refugees  from  South 
Sudan and Eritrea with food, shelter, essential household items, malnutrition treatment, water 
and sanitation. The largest share of funding was dedicated to the IDPs who had to flee violence 
and destruction of their homes and livelihoods. 

Sudan 

The socioeconomic crisis that started at the beginning of 2018 resulted in a deterioration of the 
humanitarian  situation.  Poor  access  to  mainly  food  and  health  care,  in  combination  with 
negative  coping  mechanisms,  also  triggered  increased  protection  needs.  A  high  number  of 
people faced food insecurity already during the harvest season, which grew worse during the 
lean season with a figure reaching approximately 6 million people, causing high vulnerability 
and critical levels of severe acute malnutrition (SAM). Increasing restrictions on the physical 
access to cash created additional constraints. 

In order to respond to the increasing humanitarian needs in Sudan, the Commission mobilised 
EUR 41 million to support the response to the most acute needs. 

Venezuela 

The  living  conditions  of  the  population  deteriorated  due  to  a  socio-economic  and  political 
crisis. Lack of medicines, combined with a dramatic reduction of the health system's capacity, 
resulted  in  a  growing  number  of  people  lacking  treatment.  Several  large  outbreaks  of 
infectious  diseases  occurred  as  a  result  of  discontinuation  of  preventive  programmes, 
deterioration  of  sanitary  conditions  and  decreased  vaccination  coverage.  Malnutrition  rates 
exceeded emergency thresholds in many areas.  Homicide rates and violence continued being 
among  the  highest  in  the  world.  By  the  end  of  2018,  over  3.2  million  people  had  left  the 
country mainly for Colombia, Peru, Ecuador and Brazil.  

A  total  of  EUR  32  million  was  allocated  by  the  EU  for  provision  of  notably  health  and 
nutritional  services,  water  and  sanitation,  protection,  EiE,  as  well  as  support  to  host 
communities.  This  amount  includes  EUR  7  million  of  EDF  increase  to  support  the  pressing 
humanitarian needs. 

Colombia  

Humanitarian  needs  rose,  respect  for  IHL  was  challenged,  and  violence  against  civilians  by 
armed groups caused population displacement. Over 150,000 people were displaced in 2018, 
and  1  million  suffered  confinement  and  mobility  restrictions.  By  the  end  of  the  year, 
neighbouring  countries  hosted  around  300,000  Colombian  refugees.  At  the  same  time,  the 
escalation of the crisis in Venezuela pushed people to flee to Colombia. The country was also 
highly  prone  to  natural  disasters,  and  conflict-affected  areas  provided  only  limited  access  to 
emergency responders.  

7 

 
 
The Commission allocated EUR 8.56 million to help conflict-affected people and to reinforce 
disaster  preparedness  capacity.  Aid  sectors  included:  protection,  health  care,  water  and 
sanitation for the most vulnerable groups, EiE as well as disaster preparedness. 

Haiti  

Haiti faced critical food insecurity during the year, with more than 1.3 million people in acute 
food crisis. Prevalence of a cute malnutrition among children under the age of five remained 
high  and  above  WHO  emergency  levels  in  several  locations.  More  than  two  years  after 
hurricane  Matthew,  over  140,000  affected  households  still  lacked  access  to  earthquake-
resistant shelters, as well as to water and sanitation.   

In 2018, the EU spent EUR 12 million on acute food insecurity and support for coordination 
across  humanitarian  operations.  Furthermore,  EUR  3.4  million  was  invested  in  disaster 
preparedness  initiatives,  supporting  rapid  response  capacities,  disaster-resistant  shelter 
building techniques and drought preparedness. The EU also provided EUR 0.2 million of Non-
Food Items in response to the October earthquake. 

Afghanistan 

Entering its 18th year, the ongoing conflict caused an increasing number of civilian casualties 
and new displacement. The country was also hit by a severe drought with a massive impact on 
the agricultural production, which affected more than 13 million people. Among the 600,000 
new IDPs and the estimated 820,000 refugees (both documented and undocumented) coming 
back  from  Iran  and  Pakistan  in  2018,  many  were  in  need  of  assistance.  About  13.5  million 
people were facing a situation of food insecurity, which was 6 million more than the previous 
year.  

The EU continued to provide life-saving assistance also in areas not supported by other actors, 
despite the challenging security conditions. EUR 46 million was allocated in 2018 to support 
relief operations. 

Rohingya Crisis  

After the massive displacement in 2017, about one million stateless refugees resided in 2018 in 
Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh. The majority of them lived in an extremely congested mega-camp 
and  were  completely  relying  on  humanitarian  aid,  with  no  freedom  of  movement  and 
livelihood  opportunities.  Displacement  from  Myanmar  almost  tripled  the  total  population  of 
Cox’s Bazar, creating tensions with local communities.  

The EU provided EUR 46 million in humanitarian assistance for the crisis, both in Bangladesh 
and Myanmar, in the form of basic health care, water, sanitation, shelter, nutrition, protection, 
psychological support and disaster risk reduction assistance. 

8 

 
 
Horizontal priorities 

Education in Emergencies (EiE) 

In 2018 the European Commission dedicated 8.5% of its humanitarian budget to EiE activities 
in 34 countries (for an amount of EUR 91.6 million) thus surpassing the 8% target for the year. 
In  2018  the  Commission  also  provided  EUR  1.4  million  of  EiE  funding  through  the 
Emergency  Support  Instrument  in  Greece.  The  assistance  to  EiE  benefited  1.25  million 
beneficiaries,  allowing  them  to  secure  access  to  safe  and  quality  education  in  the  most 
vulnerable situations.  

The Commission also adopted a Communication on  EiE and protracted crises1 in May 2018. 
The new policy framework will enable the EU to leverage resources more predictably, flexibly 
and effectively based on a holistic and coordinated humanitarian-development nexus approach 
and  clear  strategic  priorities.  The  EU  Member  States  endorsed  the  policy  framework  by  a 
Council Conclusion2 adopted in November 2018. 

Cash assistance 

Cash transfers are often more efficient and cost-effective than other forms of aid, as recognised 
by  the  international  community  during  the  World  Humanitarian  Summit  and  the  Grand 
Bargain  and  as  reaffirmed  by  the  Cash  Guidance  Note  (November  2017).  With  reduced 
transaction costs, aid directly reaches beneficiaries, and has maximum impact with good value-
for-money.  Moreover,  cash  transfers  support  local  markets  and  lay  the  foundations  for  the 
recovery and resilience of communities. 

The European Commission took all opportunities to scale up the use of cash which has been 
successfully used in operations in Turkey, Greece, Somalia, Lebanon, Jordan, Afghanistan and 
Iraq.  

Innovation and private sector engagement 

In  2018,  the  Commission  became  involved  in  the  global  debate  around  humanitarian 
innovation  and  private  sector  engagement,  notably  at  the  Annual  Meeting  of  the  World 
Economic  Forum,  at  the  ECOSOC  Humanitarian  Affairs  Segment,  and  at  the  UN  General 
Assembly.  

The Commission continued to support the development of innovative approaches by exploiting 
opportunities  offered  by  EU  research  and  innovation  programmes.  For  example,  three 
European  Innovation  Council  Horizon  2020  prizes  of  direct  relevance  for  the  humanitarian 
sector were launched in 2018: Affordable High-Tech for Humanitarian Aid, Early Warning for 
Epidemics and Blockchains for Social Good. 

1

 Communication on education in emergencies and protracted crises (COM (2018)304 final of 18.5.2018). 

2

 Council Conclusions on education in emergencies and protracted crises (12817/18 of 26 November 2018). 

9 

 
 
 
 
                                                 
EU Leadership of the Call to Action on Protection from Gender-Based Violence (GBV) in 
Emergencies 

From  June  2017  to  December  2018,  the  Commission  led  the  global  humanitarian  initiative 
“Call  to  Action  on  Protection  from  Gender-Based  Violence  in  Emergencies”.  This  global 
initiative  brings  together  82  partners  (States,  donors,  international  organisations  and  NGOs), 
aiming to drive change and foster accountability in the humanitarian system to address GBV 
from the earliest phases of a crisis. The Commission has been active in this initiative since its 
creation (2013) and became its global leader in June 2017.  

Throughout  2017  and  2018,  the  European  Commission  allocated  approximately  EUR  62 
million  in  humanitarian  aid  for  the  prevention  of  and  response  to  sexual  and  gender-based 
violence worldwide. 

ECHO Flight (Africa) and support to Humanitarian Air Transport Services 

Humanitarian air services are crucial to reach people in need, particularly when infrastructure 
is unreliable. In addition to transporting humanitarian supplies and workers, humanitarian air 
services carry out medical and security evacuations.  

The  Commission  operates  its  own  humanitarian  air  service  –  ‘ECHO  Flight’  –  with  hubs  in 
Kenya,  Uganda,  DRC  and  Mali.  The  service,  with  six  aircrafts,  supported  the  humanitarian 
staff of more than 250 projects, transported 26,176 humanitarian aid workers, and around 230 
tons  of  cargo  in  2018.  The  ECHO  Flight  budget  amounted  to  EUR  14.6  million,  and  the 
service was provided free of charge for partners and humanitarian organisations. 

The  Commission  also  supported  other  not-for-profit  humanitarian  air  services.  In  2018,  it 
contributed EUR 24.5 million to the WFP/United Nations Humanitarian Air Service, and EUR 
750,000 to the Afghanistan operations of Mission Aviation Fellowship. 

Summary of evaluations completed in 2018 

Comprehensive evaluation of EU Humanitarian Aid, 2012-2016 

The evaluation concluded that the EU is a principled, needs-based donor with unique features, 
such  as  its  approach  to  partnerships,  its  field  network  and  its  contributions  to  shaping  the 
humanitarian system.  Budget allocations were found to be appropriate to respond to the needs 
of  targeted  populations  and  to  the  humanitarian  aid  objectives  as  well  as  to  be  driven  by 
comprehensive and robust needs assessments. In general, actions were assessed as being cost-
effective.  

Areas  identified  as  requiring  improvement  included:  developing  a  more  programmatic 
approach to partnerships between the EU and its partners; increasing the involvement of local 
implementing  partners;  scaling  up  successful  innovative  approaches  and  improved  reporting; 
foster synergies with civil protection activities; and better communicating the rationale of EU 
strategic directions. 

10 

 
 
 
Evaluation  of  Humanitarian  Logistics  within  EU  Civil  Protection  and  Humanitarian  Action, 
2013-2017 

The evaluation covered the Commission’s investments in humanitarian air services, initiatives 
to  improve  systems  for  humanitarian  logistics,  and  funding  to  the  logistic  elements  of 
Commission projects. It concluded that Commission investments in logistics hubs and training, 
as  well  as  Commission  support  to  the  development  of  the  Global  Logistics  Cluster  all  had 
lasting benefits. Moreover, support to air services remains highly relevant. 

The evaluation recommended that the Commission develop a humanitarian logistics policy and 
pay greater attention to logistics within partnership agreements, crisis assessment and planning 
tools.  In  addition  it  proposed  ways  of  further  fostering  leadership  in  the  realm  of  logistics, 
working  collaboratively  with  other  humanitarian  actors  to  achieve  efficiencies  and  improve 
results. 

Evaluation of the EU humanitarian aid intervention in the African Great Lakes region, 2013-
2017 

This evaluation provided an assessment of EU humanitarian interventions in the African Great 
Lakes  region  from  2013-2017.  Budget  allocations  were  not  proportionate  to  the  increasing 
needs in the region, which implied that the Commission had to restrict its interventions to the 
core mandate of saving lives. Despite that, the strategy adopted was adapted to the evolution of 
the needs, a high level of coherence was achieved amongst actions and the Commission played 
a key role in humanitarian coordination structures in the region.  

The evaluation  identified specific aspects  contributing to  DG ECHO’s efficiency,  e.g. strong 
monitoring  processes.  Scope  for  improvement  was  noted  in  relation  to  ‘re-application’ 
processes  (i.e.  for  renewal  of  grants  to  an  implementing  partner  for  the  continuation  of  a 
specific action) and/or multi-year projects.  

2018 budget 

1. List of funding agreements concluded by the Commission in the field of humanitarian aid3:  

Agreements for humanitarian aid awarded by the EU can be found on the Financial 

Transparency System (FTS) website  

2. Humanitarian aid budget implementation 2018 

3 Including names of partner organisations concerned. 

11 

 
 
 
 
 
                                                 
the EU 2018 BUDGET IMPLEMENTATION 

Excluding external assigned revenue from Member States 

Region/country 

Amount 

% 

651 

37% 

86 

95 

70 

200 

11 

160 

19 

10 

552 

474 

79 

116 

57 

59 

73 

52 

21 

36 

41 

19 

199 

67 

32% 

7% 

4% 

2% 

2% 

1% 

11% 

4% 

1.753 

100% 

( in million €) 

Africa 

Sudan & South Sudan 

Central Africa 

Great Lakes 

Horn of Africa 

Southern Africa, Indian Ocean 

West Africa 

North Africa 

Africa 

Middle East and Eestern neighbourhood 

Middle East 

Eastern neighbourhood 

Asia, Pacific 

South West and Central Asia 

South East Asia and Pacific 

Latin America, Caribbean 

Latin America 

Caribbean 

Worldwide disasters 

Civil protection 

EU Aid Volunteers 

Emergency support within the Union 

Complementary operations and support 

TOTAL 

12 

 
 
 
   
   
 
   
   
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
     
   
 
 
  
 
   
   
 
 
  
 
   
   
 
 
  
 
   
   
 
 
  
 
   
   
 
 
  
 
   
   
 
 
  
 
   
   
 
 
  
 
   
   
 
 
  
 
   
   
 
 
     
   
 
 
  
 
   
   
 
 
  
 
   
   
 
 
     
   
 
   
   
 
 
  
 
   
   
 
 
  
 
   
   
 
 
     
   
 
 
  
 
   
   
 
 
  
 
   
   
 
 
     
   
 
 
     
   
 
 
     
   
 
 
     
   
 
 
     
   
 
 
     
   
 
 
   
 
 
 
 
 
 
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AND SOURCES 

•  General information on DG ECHO:  

http://ec.europa.eu/echo/en 

•  Financial information on the European Commission's humanitarian aid activities in 

2018: 
https://ec.europa.eu/echo/financing-decisions-hips-2018_en 

•  Operational information from previous years:  

http://ec.europa.eu/echo/about/annual reports en.htm 

•  2018 Annual Activity Report, DG ECHO: 

https://ec.europa.eu/info/publications/annual-activity-report-2018-
european-civil-protection-and-humanitarian-aid-operations-echo_en 

•  2018 Annual Management and Performance Report: 

https://ec.europa.eu/info/node/10237 

•  DG ECHO’s evaluation reports:  

http://ec.europa.eu/echo/funding-evaluations/evaluations en 

•  European Commission and Member States' humanitarian aid funding data: 

https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/hac/ 

List of partners having signed the 2014 Framework Partnership 

http://ec.europa.eu/echo/sites/echo-site/files/weblistpartners.pdf 

13