The EU approves emergency aid of three million Euros for Chile

The European Commission (EC) has approved three million euros of emergency aid in response to the situation caused by the earthquake that shook Chile on Saturday and has caused over 300 deaths.

“As an act of solidarity with the Chilean people, we have immediately earmarked three million euros for the organisations working on the ground there, so that they can provide help in the first and most critical days after the earthquake”, the EU Humanitarian Aid Officer, Kristalina Georgieva said in a press release.

The funding is managed by the EU Humanitarian Aid Office (ECHO), which is headed by Georgieva.

The President of the Commission, José Manuel Durao Barroso, disclosed a few hours after the earthquake that the ECHO would have three million Euros at its disposal to meet the primary aid needs in Chile.
Also on Saturday, the Spanish Presidency of the European Union activated the EU coordination mechanisms for catastrophes such as the one that has happened in Chile.