The aid package, approved by the European Parliament and the Council, is composed as follows:
Cohesion Policy: over € 1 billion to support five Member States following devastating natural disasters of 2023
- 15 October 2024
- € 378.8 million for Italy following the flooding in the Emilia-Romagna region in May 2023;
- € 428.4 million for Slovenia for the floods in August 2023;
- € 5.2 million for Austria following the same floods that hit Slovenia;
- € 101.5 million for Greece for the floods in September 2023;
- € 67.8 million for Italy following the floods in the Tuscany region in October 2023;
- € 46.7 million for France for the floods in the Hauts-de-France region in November 2023.
Next steps
The Commission will now finalise the respective Commission Implementing Decisions awarding the assistance to each of the Member States supported by this package.
Once the decisions are adopted, the final financial aid can be paid out in a single instalment to the general budget of the requesting countries.
Background
The EU Solidarity Fund (EUSF) is one of the main EU instruments for post-disaster recovery and a tangible expression of EU solidarity. It supports Member States and accession countries by offering a financial contribution after severe natural disasters and, since 2020, major health emergencies.
Since 2002, the EUSF has mobilised over €8.6 billion for interventions in 130 disaster events (110 natural disasters and 20 health emergencies) in 24 Member States (plus the UK) and 4 accession countries (Albania, Montenegro, Serbia, and Türkiye).
The EUSF is a special instrument of solidarity and is mobilised upon applications of eligible countries and the assessment of their eligibility. The emergency and recovery operations may be financed by the EUSF retroactively from day one of the disaster.
In the case of natural disasters, both major and regional, the funding can be used for essential emergency and recovery operations like repair of damaged infrastructure, protection for the population, securing preventive infrastructure and protection of cultural heritage, as well as clean-up operations. Emergency and recovery operations may be financed by the EUSF retroactively from day one of the disaster.
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