US approves $240 million for humanitarian assistance in Nigeria, others

Nigeria is among the beneficiary countries listed in the United States’ newly approved humanitarian and disaster response assistance to Catholic Relief Services (CRS).

The CRS, the international humanitarian agency of the U.S. Catholic community, will receive over $240 million to provide critical needs in selected nations through an extensive network of local partners.

Burma, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Haiti, and Sudan will also benefit from the multi-sectoral aid spanning food, nutrition, health, water, sanitation, and shelter, among others.

State Department Bureau of Disaster and Humanitarian Response Senior Official Ryan Shrum announced the funding on Friday in Rome, Italy, alongside U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See Brian Burch.

Also at the meeting were U.S. Representative to UN Agencies in Rome Lynda Blanchard, CRS VP for Humanitarian Response Jennifer Poidatz, and Caritas Internationalis Secretary General Alistair Dutton.

The financial grant to Catholic Relief Services, according to the State Department, is the first in a series of awards to trusted and vetted implementing organizations.

It complements the $3.8 billion provided through the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), reducing grant management burdens and ensuring disbursements are transparent.

The Trump Administration says CRS demonstrates its commitment to working with faith-based bodies that have delivered much-needed assistance in the world’s most difficult environments.

The organization is already on the ground in DR Congo, supporting Ebola response efforts and working to address other life-saving essentials throughout the Central African nation.