6. Letter to the Chairman from the Directorate-General
for Humanitarian Aid—ECHO
DG ECHO FINANCING OF PANZI HOSPITAL
With reference to the hearing on "DG ECHO's
role in the international humanitarian aid architecture",
I am writing to clarify DG ECHO's position on the financing of
Panzi hospital in Bukavu province, DRC.
We very much appreciate the work of the hospital,
in particular its ability to deal with the victims of sexual violence.
As Mr Luchner has explained to the Committee, we are in a phase
in our work in the Democratic Republic of Congo where considerations
of linking relief, rehabilitation and development are becoming
more important. As an emergency funder, DG ECHO must constantly
remain aware that we should not move into situations, in which
we effectively substitute ourselves for long-term development
donors. As you will understand, this is not always easy, but absolutely
necessary to maintain our ability to react to natural and man-made
disasters.
This being said, for the moment we have only
made the hospital administration aware of DG ECHO's role. There
is no question of "cutting off aid". Indeed, we are
currently preparing another contract of 300,000 Euro for the hospital.
Concerning the medium- and long-term future,
it is DG ECHO's policy to coordinate a handover of its activities,
wherever this proves feasible. Naturally, we will do the same
in DRC, in cooperation with the EC Delegation in Kinshasa, as
well as with other donors.
I hope that these explanations will allay the
concerns expressed by the Committee. Finally, I would like to
thank you and the Members of the Committee for having taken the
time to discuss the Commission's and DG ECHO's role in international
humanitarian work.
António Cavaco
The Director General
June 2006
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