A school in the remote and isolated Barangay Santa Fe in San Marcelino, Zambales. The province is one of the hardest hit by the heavy monsoon rains and flooding. Photo from PCO.
Anna Mogato | September 19, 2026
MANILA — The European Union (EU) has provided a €150,000 or 10.9 million-peso fund to support the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) relief program for flood victims in the Philippines.
In a statement released on Friday, the EU said the humanitarian funding will cover over 32,000 Filipinos in the hardest hit areas such as Metro Manila, Central Luzon, and the Ilocos Region.
“The funding is part of the EU’s overall contribution to the Disaster Response Emergency Fund (DREF) of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC),” the statement read.
“It comes in addition to the over €2 million already allocated to humanitarian partners in the Philippines at the start of 2026.”
The Philippines, mostly Luzon, has been submerged by floodwaters due to nonstop rains since August, exacerbated by faulty flood control projects.
The EU reported that as of September 14, over 10.5 million Filipinos have been affected across 11 regions, with 118 cities declaring a state of calamity.
Over 120,100 people have also been displaced and sent to evacuation centers.
With EU’s funding, the PRC will be providing essential items, hot meals and safe drinking water to evacuation centers.
The funding will also cover mobile health teams to provide medication, consultation, mental health support, as well as hygiene activities and disease monitoring.