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EU boosts support to recovery, development in C. Africa
The EU says it is increasing its financial support to the Central African Republic, which is still living with the impacts of recent conflict
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he EU says it is increasing its financial support to the Central African Republic, which is still living with the impacts of recent conflict.
To draw international attention and to support the country, the EU said it had held an international conference focusing on the country's humanitarian needs, recovery and resilience-building in Brussels on Tuesday.
The high representative of the EU for foreign affairs and security policy, Federica Mogherini, who is also the European Commission (EC) vice president, hosted the event together with International Cooperation and Development commissioner Neven Mimica and Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management commissioner Christos Stylianides.
"After years of conflict, the people of the Central African Republic deserve a present and a future of peace. Since the beginning of this crisis, we as the EU have been by their side to help bring recovery, stability and development to the country,' Mogherini said in a release made available to The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.
The recent Bangui Forum had launched a process toward national reconciliation, which was led by Central Africans themselves, she said.
'With today's conference, we reaffirm our commitment, together with our international partners, to support them on their path to recovery and peace," Mogherini said at the event.
The President of the Central African Republic's transition government, Catherine Samba-Panza, led the country's delegation.
At the event, the EC committed to increase its assistance for the Central African Republic with a total of '¬72 million. This includes humanitarian aid (with '¬10 million of fresh funding), budget support (with an additional '¬40 million) and new contributions to the EU Trust Fund for the Central African Republic ('¬22 million extra).
In addition, the first results of the EU Trust Fund for Central African Republic (called 'Bêkou' which means 'hope' in Sango, the country's main language) were presented at the conference, along with the fund's future prospects.
"We live in turbulent times where new crises hit at anytime and anywhere. But our attention must not shift from ongoing humanitarian crises such as this one. The people of the Central African Republic continue to need our help to survive and rebuild their lives," explained commissioner Stylianides. (ebf)(++++)
