European Union pledges 1.1 billion euros in aid to Syria
The European Union has pledged 1.1 billion euros or roughly $1.2 billion in aid to Syria during the Third International Pledging Conference for Syria.
According to the Daily Star, the EU's aid Commissioner Christos Stylianides said in a statement that the pledge was made in response to an "overwhelming" need in Syria and was intended to contribute to the "extraordinary effort ... needed by the wider donor community to mobilise significant funding."
Stylianides further said that 500 million euros of the pledge will go towards "humanitarian aid, early recovery and longer-term stabilisation assistance" to Syrians displaced by the civil war and the rise of the Islamic State.
The remaining balance will be shouldered by pledges from the 28 member nations of the Union.
The conference, which was held in Kuwait City and chaired by UN head Ban-Ki Moon. was attended by representatives of more than 80 countries as well as non-governmental and charitable organisations.
In addition to the EU, major contributors included the United States with $507 million, the United Kingdom with $150 million and host country Kuwait with $500 million, while the United Arab Emirates promised aid to the tune of $100 million and Norway pitched in $93 million.
Charitable groups and non-government organisations committed to giving aid worth $500 million and $506 million, respectively.
The Daily Star said that total pledges reached $3.8 billion, slightly lower than the $3.9 billion in pledges made in the conference last year.
UN Commissioner Moon said the pledges were "very generous" as he described Syrians as "victims of the worst humanitarian crisis of our time."
"Four out of five Syrians live in poverty, misery and deprivation. The country has lost nearly four decades of human development," the UN leader told participants of the conference.
Ban said in a separate report 7.6 million Syrians have been displaced by the fighting. An additional 9.6 million have also fled Syria to seek refuge neighbouring countries.
"Every day brings more death, displacement and destruction," the report said.
