1. Home
  2. Updates
  3. EU sets up a Humanitarian Air Bridge
11 May, 2020

EU sets up a Humanitarian Air Bridge

On 8 May, the European Commission announced the set-up of an EU Humanitarian Air Bridge with the purpose of transporting humanitarian workers and emergency supplies to some of the most critical areas around the world in order to respond to the situation caused by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

European Commissioner for Crisis Management, Janez Lenarčič, travelled to Bangui last week where he met with H.E. Faustin-Archange Touadéra, President of the Central African Republic, as well as with representatives of humanitarian organisations.

“Leaving any area of the world unprotected today leaves us all unprotected tomorrow. As part of our global response, the EU will open a dedicated Humanitarian Air Bridge to get aid into areas which lack supplies due to the difficulties of global transit. This can be a lifeline for some of the most vulnerable communities worldwide,”Lenarčič said in a press release issued last week.

The first flight to the Central African Republic departed from Lyon on 8 May. More humanitarian flights are being scheduled for the coming weeks, with African countries as a priority destination, given the pandemic’s potential to worsen many of the continent’s existing humanitarian crises.

Read the Commission’s press release in full

You might also like:

Cookies on ALDE

ALDE uses functional and performance cookies that are necessary for the websites to function as well as possible. These cookies do not use any personal data and no permission is required for this. We also use marketing cookies to tailor the website to your preferences. You can give permission for this below. You can always change your settings on the Privacy Statement page in the cookies section.

Adjust preference
Accept all cookies