At 31.5%, Africa was once again the priority region for our aid projects in 2022. The situation is particularly dramatic in places where Islamist terror is spreading and Christians are victims of persecution and displacement, such as in Mozambique, Burkina Faso and Nigeria.
In 2022, we received a particularly large number of requests for support from Ukraine, where the Church, in the midst of war, is trying to alleviate the spiritual, psychological and material needs of those who have fled their homes and are in need. Therefore, in 2022, 10% of our funds went to Ukraine. Our aid for Central and Eastern Europe thus increased to 17.7%.
Latin America accounted for 16.7% of our total aid. Here, rural exodus, migration, drug cartels, sects and anticlerical governments continue to be among the major challenges faced by the Church.
14.6% of our total budget in the year under review was devoted to Asia (including 0.7% for Oceania), where Christians in most countries form a minority that is discriminated against or even persecuted.
The funding volume for the Middle East represented 18.1% of our total aid. The focal points in 2022 were Syria and Lebanon. The aim of our emergency aid was to ensure the survival of Christian communities and to counteract the massive exodus of Christians.