By Amin Kef Sesay
In response to the devastating fire incident in the capital Freetown on 24 March 2021, which left 1,600 families homeless and more than 400 people injured, the European Union has provided €100, 000 (1,218,912,700 Sierra Leonean Leones) in emergency funding.
The funds will help the Sierra Leone Red Cross Society in assisting the victims with emergency support for shelter and basic non-food items through cash, but also food, psychosocial support and safe water and sanitation to prevent waterborne and hygiene-related diseases outbreaks.
Families also need support to restart their daily activities to avoid slipping into extreme poverty and hunger. The aid will benefit the 1,000 most vulnerable among them who have lost their homes, food stocks, money and other valuables. Priority will be given to families who have members with disabilities, to the elderly, lactating mothers, pregnant women, children under 5 and households headed by women.
This funding to the Sierra Leone Red Cross is part of the EU’s overall contribution to the Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC).
