Fundación Caja Navarra puts €120,000 into Valencia's recovery after the DANA floods

• The organization is backing initiatives by Fundación Vicente Ferrer, Fundación Felisa and Acción contra el Hambre to ease the social, economic and emotional consequences of the emergency
• The projects approach recovery as a whole: housing, employment and community support over the medium and long term.

Valencia, February 13. – Fundación Caja Navarra is stepping up its commitment to humanitarian emergency response by backing three social projects aimed at easing the consequences of the DANA storm that hit the province of Valencia so hard.

The organization has committed a total of €120,000, €40,000 to each project, run by Fundación Vicente Ferrer, Fundación Felisa and Acción contra el Hambre, with the aim of supporting the people and communities affected through their recovery beyond the immediate emergency, backing solutions that help social, economic and emotional rebuilding over the medium and long term.

The president of Fundación Caja Navarra, José Ángel Andrés, spoke of “how important it is to be there during the humanitarian emergency a natural disaster causes, and to keep at that work once the spotlight has moved on. Being there in the urgent phase matters just as much as being there once it is forgotten and the rebuilding still has to go on. That is the thinking behind Fundación Caja Navarra’s support for these three projects. Our organization acts as the link that lets them move forward. Doing things together matters enormously”.

The investment is part of a whole-picture approach, focused on restoring decent living conditions, creating economic opportunity and strengthening the fabric of the community. The projects were presented at a press conference in Valencia, as a sign of Fundación Caja Navarra’s commitment to the areas affected and to a coordinated response alongside specialist social organizations.

Speaking at the press conference were José Ángel Andrés Gutiérrez, president of Fundación Caja Navarra; Sonia González Vázquez, deputy director of Social Action Spain at Acción contra el Hambre; Sergio Moratón, Fundación Vicente Ferrer’s delegate for the Region of Valencia; and Margarita Albors, president of Fundación Felisa. All four organizations stressed how important it is that “society, institutions and organizations keep working together, because there is still a great deal to do”.

Rebuilding homes and decent living conditions

One of the projects being supported is run by Fundación Felisa and focuses on restoring liveable conditions in homes hit by the DANA floods, especially those belonging to the most vulnerable families.

The initiative makes it possible to work on homes with non-structural damage in a technical, scalable way, so that people can return home safely and with dignity. The work builds in sustainability, energy efficiency and climate resilience criteria, and will help restore around 30 homes for vulnerable families, letting them leave the emergency phase behind and move toward getting their day-to-day lives properly back.

The president of Fundación Felisa, Margarita Albors, said that “the emergency is no longer in the headlines, but it is still in the living room of a lot of houses. At Fundación Felisa we have been on the ground since day one, and our work does not stop while there are families fighting to get back into their homes in decent conditions. Thanks to the partnership with Fundación Caja Navarra we will repair 30 homes to sustainability and resilience standards. But there is still an enormous amount to do; it is vital that more organizations join in now, so that being forgotten does not stall a rebuilding effort that should not leave anyone behind”.

Work and economic independence for the people affected

The second project draws on the experience of Acción contra el Hambre, through its Employment School in the municipalities hit by the floods, an initiative aimed at helping people in vulnerable situations into work.

The program is for 30 people and combines one-to-one support, skills development, technical training in sectors where there is real demand, and placements with local businesses, with the aim of opening up new job opportunities and helping participants become economically independent. Recovery after the DANA floods is therefore also approached through rebuilding people’s plans for their lives and getting the local economy moving again.

Acción contra el Hambre was there from the start with the emergency, water and sanitation response. That commitment to the area continues, moving from emergency work to more structural support.

Community support, education and mental health

The third project is led by Fundación Vicente Ferrer, working in Spain for the first time after a natural disaster on this scale. Its work in Valencia focuses on rebuilding the community over the medium and long term, with particular attention to education, older people, strengthening the social fabric and mental health.

The initiative covers the repair of schools and community spaces, support for older people and psychosocial work to address the emotional consequences of the floods. All of it is done alongside local organizations, strengthening social cohesion and contributing to a more human, more sustainable, longer-lasting recovery.

For his part, Sergio Moratón, the FVF’s delegate for the Region of Valencia, said that “after the tragedy people have lived through, one of the biggest challenges is still repairing and healing the least visible damage, the kind that affects mental health”. Thanks to Fundación Caja Navarra’s support, we have set up, together with Confederación Salud Mental España and its Valencia branch, a program to spot those invisible wounds and support people through their recovery, and to gather everything we learn so that we can put strategies in place to ease that impact in future disasters through the right psychosocial support.