ICRC, Egyptian Red Crescent sign annual cooperation agreement to strengthen partnership

The agreement was signed by the ICRC head of Egypt Delegation, Mr. Jerome Fontana, and the Executive Director of the ERCS, Dr. Ramy El-Nazer, both of whom emphasized the importance of the cooperation between the ICRC and ERCS in fulfilling their humanitarian role of assisting people in need. The OCA was signed at a ceremony held at the ERCS headquarters in Cairo, which was attended by representatives from both organizations.

Through the agreement, the ICRC and ERCS would strengthen their longstanding partnership in joint humanitarian operations and capacity-building programs to respond to the needs of people affected by violence or conflict, including from the broader region.

The ICRC and the ERCS are part of the Red Cross Red Crescent Movement, the largest humanitarian network in the world, working to help millions of people in situations of armed conflict and natural disasters. The ICRC and ERCS work together as partners in Egypt to help those affected by crises and emergencies. They cooperate in several fields like emergency preparedness response, restoring family links and the promotion of international humanitarian law (IHL).

They also work together to respond to the humanitarian needs of people in North Sinai through joint distribution and livelihood programs. Over the past five years, the ICRC and the ERC supported 47,500 families (237,500 individuals) in North Sinai with food parcels and hygiene kits, and they started in 2021 a livelihood program to support families in need in the governorate.The program aims to provide sustainable livelihood opportunities to improve the families’ income by helping them establish small-income generating projects.

In 2022, the ICRC and ERCS assisted 301 families with livestock, agriculture, service and trade-based livelihoods and continue to conduct needs assessment to assist more families with small-scale income generating activities in 2023.

The ICRC is an impartial, neutral, and independent organization ensuring humanitarian protection and assistance for victims of war and armed violence. It is present in more than 90 countries around the world, including Egypt, where it has been working for over 100 years.