COMMISSION DECISION of on the financing of humanitarian actions in Mongolia from the general budget of the European Union (ECHO/MNG/BUD/2010/01000)

Brussels

C(2010) XXX final

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No.1257/96 of 20 June 1996 concerning humanitarian aid 1, and in particular Article 2 and Article 15(3) thereof;

Whereas:

(1) The winter of 2009-2010 was exceptionally cold in Mongolia, causing a significant number of people to freeze to death;

(2) Mongolia experienced a disaster known as "Dzud", a natural phenomenon arising from continuous heavy snowfall combined with extreme cold and preceded by dry summers, resulting in insufficient grazing pastures and massive loss of livestock;

(3) One third of the population of Mongolia leads nomadic lives and depends entirely on livestock for a living;

(4) The Government of Mongolia declared a national disaster in January 2010 and appealed for international assistance;

(5) To reach populations in need, humanitarian aid should be channelled through nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) and international organisations including United Nations (UN) agencies. Therefore the European Commission should implement the budget by direct centralised management or by joint management;

(6) An assessment of the humanitarian situation leads to the conclusion that humanitarian aid actions should be financed by the European Union for a period of 12 months;

(7) It is estimated that an amount of EUR 2,000,000 from budget article 23 02 01 of the general budget of the European Union is necessary to provide humanitarian assistance to 600,000 people affected by the Dzud in Mongolia, taking into account the available budget, other donors' contributions and other factors. The activities covered by this Decision may be financed in full in accordance with Article 253 of the Implementing Rules of the Financial Regulation;

(8) The present Decision constitutes a financing Decision within the meaning of Article 75 of the Financial Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/20022, Article 90 of the detailed rules for the implementation of the Financial Regulation determined by Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2342/20023, and Article 15 of the internal rules on the implementation of the general budget of the European Union4;

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

1. In accordance with the objectives and general principles of humanitarian aid, the Commission hereby approves a total amount of EUR 2,000,000 for the financing of humanitarian actions in Mongolia from budget article 23 02 01 of the 2010 general budget of the European Union.

2. In accordance with Article 2 of Council Regulation No.1257/96, the principal objective of this Decision is to save and preserve life by providing humanitarian assistance to vulnerable people affected by the Dzud phenomenon in Mongolia. The humanitarian actions shall be implemented in pursuance of the following specific objective:

– To improve the food security, livelihood and health status of vulnerable herder households across the country and of former herders who have migrated to towns.

The full amount of this Decision is allocated to this specific objective.