The European Union will provide €123.3 million in humanitarian aid this year to deliver life-saving assistance to the most vulnerable people in Latin America and the Caribbean, according to the European Commission in a statement. Part of this aid will also strengthen disaster preparedness and response, given the region’s high exposure to natural hazards. In a year of shrinking global aid, the EU is choosing solidarity, delivering life-saving support and standing by international humanitarian law.
In 2025, 15.6 million people in Latin America and the Caribbean needed humanitarian assistance. In 2026, because of severe budget cuts, the revised target presented at the United Nations will reduce this figure by half, leaving millions without vital aid. These cutbacks underscore the critical importance of EU humanitarian funding for the region.
€52 million will provide relief to Venezuelan people in need across the region and their host communities. In Colombia, €17 million will mostly go to support people affected by armed conflict and those displaced in border areas. A regional allocation of over €16.3 million for the rest of South America will support disaster preparedness and response to humanitarian crises.
In the Caribbean, €23 million will be used to tackle the humanitarian impact of escalating armed violence in Haiti, helping affected populations meet their most urgent needs. An additional €4 million will go to the rest of the Caribbean, with a focus on the humanitarian situation in Cuba and the Dominican Republic as well as in countries hosting refugees and asylum seekers. Finally, €11 million will support vulnerable people affected by violence, forced displacement, and food insecurity in Central America and Mexico.
“The European Union stands firmly with the most vulnerable people in Latin America and the Caribbean, where crises in countries like Venezuela, Colombia, and Haiti continue to deepen,” said Hadja Lahbib, Commissioner for Equality, Preparedness and Crisis Management. “When I visited Colombia last November, I met people forced to flee their homes and communities struggling to survive conflict, displacement, and more frequent natural disasters. This funding will also help save lives by strengthening disaster preparedness in a region exposed to hurricanes, floods, and earthquakes. Europe is a reliable and principled humanitarian partner, and we will continue to stand by people in crisis.”
