When Kristalina Georgieva first came to the European Commission in 2010, the budget for humanitarian action was at 840 million euros ($933.2 million).
When she left last year, the funding has shot up to 1.4 billion euros.
And yet no one, not even the former ECHO chief, who now sits as vice president in charge of the commission’s budget and human resources, could claim that this is adequate to meet the requirements of the world’s humanitarian crises today, from those introduced by conflict as in the case of the Central African Republic to those resulting from huge natural disasters such as the ongoing relief work in quake-hit Nepal. In its coordinated appeals alone, the United Nations is appealing for $18.85 billion for its response plans this year.