The European Commission has recently published a Eurobarometer survey looking at citizens’ awareness and views on humanitarian aid across the EU. This is a key issue as the EU as a whole – European Commission plus Member States – is the world's largest humanitarian aid donor, helping people in need across the globe. The Commission alone spent on average nearly €800 million annually in the last five years (€931.7m in 2009).
Specifically, the survey looks at four major issues:
- Awareness on humanitarian aid and the actors in this domain: this section looks at respondents’ awareness of organisations that provide the actual aid at the scene of a disaster, as well as at the bodies who provide the finance to fund these aid activities.
- Knowledge and information on EU humanitarian aid activities: this section examines EU citizens’ knowledge of EU involvement in such activities and assesses whether citizens believe they have enough information.
- Importance of EU humanitarian aid activities for EU citizens: EU citizens are asked whether they consider the EU’s activities in these areas to be important.
- Common or national approach to humanitarian aid: citizens of the 27 EU Member States were polled as to whether they believed it would be more efficient if aid were provided by Member States on an individual basis or provided by the EU through the European Commission.
The report looks at views held generally across the EU, how these views vary from country to country, significant variations by gender, age, education and other socio-demographic variables.
Key outcomes include the following:
- Europe cares – eight out of ten EU citizens (79%) think that it is important that the European Union funds humanitarian aid activities outside its borders. However, the financial and economic crisis has taken its toll as the approval rate dropped 9% from 88% in 2006 when the last survey was carried out. There is a clear link between this decrease and the individual financial situation of citizens; those who have problems paying their bills expressed less support.
- EU citizens have a clear opinion on how humanitarian aid should be administered. There is a strong endorsement of the Commission's mandate to provide relief aid, undertaken through its humanitarian aid and civil protection department (ECHO). An overall majority of EU citizens (58%), and a relative majority in all Member States, think that humanitarian aid is more efficient when provided by the EU through the European Commission. Around one quarter (24%) would prefer that relief funds be channelled through Member States.
- Citizens think that EU humanitarian aid is an important issue on which they should be kept informed (86% do so), despite a perceived lack of knowledge about such activities, as only 18% feel well informed.
- Three bodies are frequently mentioned when respondents are asked to name an organisation that provide on-the-ground support, namely the Red Cross, the United Nations’ Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and non-governmental organisations.
- 18% of respondents spontaneously name the EU, the European Commission and/or its Humanitarian Aid department (ECHO) as an humanitarian aid donor.
Background
The Commission's humanitarian funds are channelled through its Directorate-General for Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection (ECHO), which comes under the responsibility of Commissioner Kristalina Georgieva. The projects it finances are implemented by non-governmental relief organisations, specialised UN agencies (like OCHA, WFP, UNHCR, UNICEF), and the Red Cross/Red Crescent movement.
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