Mercy Corps Urges New European Commission to Ensure Humanitarian Aid and Development Efforts Reach the most Vulnerable

BRUSSELS — Mercy Corps welcomes the new European Commission and its commitment, expressed by President Ursula von der Leyen, to help to end the destruction and loss caused by conflict, and to recommit to humanitarian aid and sustainable development. 

Conflict and fragility are rising across the globe, stalling hard-won development gains, driving global security challenges and human suffering, while generating a huge global cost— $19.1 trillion in 2021. Parallel to this, global temperatures are expected to further rise, blasting past internationally agreed targets. These all have catastrophic consequences for the most vulnerable communities, who are generally those least responsible for it. 

Robbert van den Berg, Managing Director in the Netherlands and Mercy Corps’ representative to the EU says: 

“The European Commission – with its resources, structures and reach – has the potential to play a world leading role addressing the impact of climate change and conflict, if it chooses to prioritize the needs of the most vulnerable communities, particularly in fragile and conflict affected places. 

“Mercy Corps analysis shows that in 2022, the ten most fragile states received less than 1% of climate adaptation finance. It is no longer sufficient to address climate change and conflict separately as if they are somehow disconnected global challenges. 

“The European Commission will only be able to impact the human suffering across the world if it takes concrete steps to support communities in fragile contexts in Europe’s neighborhood and beyond that face the devastating intersection of conflict, climate change, weak institutions and poor governance. 

“With over 300 million people in need of humanitarian assistance and protection in 2024 as the devastating crises continue in Gaza, Sudan and beyond, the European Commission must continue its vital role in supporting urgent humanitarian action. Substantial funding will be needed to scale up responses to current major emergencies while political investment and leadership are essential to secure access and protect humanitarian action. 

“As a global organization responding to the most immediate crises and serving longer-term development objectives in more than 40 countries, Mercy Corps is looking forward to continuing our valued partnership with the European Commission to address these challenges.”