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The European Commission on Monday announced the adoption of its humanitarian aid budget for 2020, amounting to €900 million, Brussels Times reports.

The aid, which is provided each year, is channelled through partner humanitarian organisations such as UN agencies, the Red Cross and NGOs. Its targeted beneficiaries are people affected by armed conflict, famine and the direct or expected impact of climate change.

The EU is the leading global humanitarian aid donor and helps people in over 80 countries.

This year’s package includes €400 million for programmes in Africa, aimed at assisting people suffering from the food and nutrition crisis in the Sahel, those displaced by violence in South Sudan, and vulnerable populations in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

In Asia and Latin America, EU aid worth €111 million will continue to assist the most vulnerable populations affected by the crisis in Venezuela and refugees in neighbouring countries. The European Union will also continue to provide help in Asian countries such as Afghanistan, which has witnessed war for nearly four decades, and Myanmar and Bangladesh, which both host Rohingya populations.

For the Middle East, the Commission has announced an envelope of €345 million for victims of the crisis in Syria, refugees in neighbouring countries, and people affected by the extremely critical situation in Yemen. The Commission’s initial humanitarian budget for 2019 had already been earmarked to a large extent for Syria and Yemen and reached a record level of €1.6 billion.