The European Commission is targeting, over a period of six months, a package of emergency humanitarian aid worth 2.8 million ECU at the most vulnerable victims of crisis in Tadjikistan and Kyrgyzstan.

Tadjikistan : this country, probably the poorest of the former Soviet Republics, has seen living standards plummet as a result of civil war, including the needs of returnees from Afghanistan. Far from improving over the past two years, the situation in this country of just over five million people has continued to deteriorate, sparking tensions and frequent clashes between government forces and rebels.

This grant will enable four non-governmental organisations (NGOs) working with the European Community Humanitarian Office (ECHO) to distribute basic medical supplies throughout the country. Caritas (Switzerland) will work on rebuilding houses in the south of the country. The idea is to help people who have returned by offering goods and services to stabilise their lives.

The NGOs working on medical aid are Pharmaciens sans Frontières (France), Médecins sans Frontières (France) and Vision International (United Kingdom).

This medical aid and shelter project complements a special food aid programme covering the southern Caucasus and Central Asia to which ECHO is making a substantial contribution.

Kyrgyzstan : this central Asian country of four million peopleis probably the second poorest of the former Soviet republics after Tadjikistan. The economic situation in Kyrgyzstan may have stabilised after collapsing in the wake of independence, but it is certainly not improving. Health and social security systems are virtually non-existent, and the poorest are suffering most.

The European Community Humanitarian Office (ECHO), which is coordinating this aid package, will work with the Netherlands Red Cross, Womenaid International (United Kingdom) and France Libertés.

Womenaid will provide food, food supplements such as multivitamin pills, and personal hygiene items for pregnant women and breast-feeding mothers. The Netherlands Red Cross will provide general hospitals and clinics with essential medicines and basic medical supplies. France Libertés will purchase winter clothing locally for distribution to those in need.