The European Union said Friday that it will provide Somalia with another 175 million euros (248 million dollars) in development aid as part of a bid to bolster the country, which is currently facing a drought-induced famine, dpa reported. "Somalia is going through a severe humanitarian crisis. Drought is the immediate reason for this, but the root causes lie in the deeper structural problems of this fragile state," EU Development Commissioner Andris Piebalgs said in a statement. The fresh funds, which can be used for everything from new infrastructure to education and institution-building, will take to 387 million euros the amount of development aid Somalia is to receive from the EU through 2013. The money will, however, be applied only in relatively stable areas with "viable security conditions and minimum levels of governance" - such as Somaliland, Puntland and central Somalia, the commission noted. The bloc has separately allocated 30 million euros in humanitarian aid to Somalia to help it tackle this year's crisis, with at least another 28 million euros planned.
