Italy approved an emergency relief package worth more than EUR 2 billion to help flood-hit areas in the northern region of Emilia-Romagna, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Tuesday.

Torrential rains devastate Italy, claiming 14 lives

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Almost a week after the disaster, about 23,000 people are still homeless and some cities remain flooded, while thousands of acres of particularly fertile farmland have been wrecked.

Meloni, who visited affected areas on Sunday after returning a day early from a G7 summit in Japan, convened a cabinet meeting on Tuesday to approve the measures.

#BREAKING Italy PM announces package worth over two billion euros in floods aid pic.twitter.com/mV6j9fr1nU

— AFP News Agency (@AFP) May 23, 2023
The package includes emergency-related spending and moratoriums on tax and social contributions for affected households and firms, Meloni informed after the cabinet meeting.