The European Union is stepping in Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia, the newly independent states of the southern Caucasus, with humanitarian aid worth 22.32 MECU over the next six months. The European Community Humanitarian Office (ECHO) will work on coordinated programmes with the Red Cross family and with non-governmental organisations from all over the European Union. These will cover basic healthcare, sanitation and food aid over the winter.

- Armenia (7.23 MECU): With its population of 3.5 million, about 1.5 million people have been identified as being in acute need, including 380,000 refugees. The country has not yet recovered from the 1988 earthquake that demolished the Spitak region.

- Azerbaijan (7.347 MECU): War with ethnic Armenian forces over Nagorno-Karabach has meant the dispersal of over 10 percent of the population of 8 million. Many are living in tent camps. The economy and welfare system have collapsed. Minimum food requirements for one person now cost double the average earnings for an entire family.

- Georgia (7.533 MECU): People living in towns without access to land have been worst affected by spiralling poverty. Thecountry, which has a population of some 5.45 million, has been ripped apart by ethnic and civil conflicts, and nearly a quarter of a million people have been displaced.

- Nagorno-Karabakh (670,000 ECU). The Azerbaijani government is unable to provide support for refugees from the conflict, and this grant will help provide medical aid, as well as food, water and sanitation for those living in institutions.

- The balance of the aid package is made up of a project worth 540,000 ECU to help the war wounded throughout the region, as well as victims of the earthquake. The International Committee of the Red Cross will implement this.

The priorities in humanitarian assistance are:

- Medicines and medical supplies: There is no local production of drugs and supplies. Few people can afford the few drugs available. Though the health system was formerly well developed, hospitals are now in such a state of disrepair that they have practically ground to a halt. This winter's projects will concentrate on providing medicines for targeted centres.

- Shelter and preparation for the winter: This programme will help replenish stocks of items to help shelter the homeless. As temperatures plunge during the winter, projects will include actions to distribute winter clothes and fuel for essential services.

- Water, Sanitation, Hygiene: The infrastructure is completely inadequate to deal with extremely high numbers of displaced people living in conditions that are a serious health hazard. Institutions for the elderly, disabled and other vulnerable groups are in a deplorable state, and projects will include emergency repairs.

- Food aid: Much of the population depends on bread alone, and state-run supplies of this basic food have been disrupted. A food aid programme will aim to target the most vulnerable groups, such as displaced and elderly people. There will be food parcels, food delivered in bulk for collective kitchens and institutions, and soup kitchens in urban areas.