Palestinian refugees. Photo: UNRWA
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) said that poverty rates among Palestinian refugees in Syria, Lebanon and Gaza have reached “unprecedented levels.”
Commissioner-General of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini, said that 90% of Palestinians are below the poverty line on the sidelines of the meetings of the advisory committee of the UN agency, in the Jordanian capital, Amman.
The Commissioner-General of “UNRWA” stated that the agency urgently needed between $50 million and $80 million “to be able to end the year and keep schools, health centers, and other basic services running.”
Lazzarini stressed that UNRWA “cannot fulfill its mandate in the coming years if the same funding continues,” adding that “the agency needs $200 million to support digital transformation and support depleted assets.”
He continued, “We are not able to continue with the same approach in light of the high costs and the increasing needs, and the agency is implementing a policy of austerity,” stressing that “it is not possible to continue providing the same quality of services in the education and health sectors.”
Lazzarini affirmed that “in the absence of a just solution to the Palestinian issue, UNRWA will remain an indispensable and irreplaceable agency, and it is the largest investment for Palestinian refugees.”
He warned that “in Lebanon, the situation of the Palestinian refugees has reached rock bottom, most of them live below the poverty line, and their lives lack dignity,” noting that “40 per cent of children in Gaza do not receive breakfast.”
The Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees “UNRWA” was established by a decision of the General Assembly in 1949, and it was mandated to provide assistance and protection to Palestine refugees registered with it in its five fields of operations.
UNRWA is deployed in Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, until “a just and lasting solution to the plight of the Palestinian refugees is reached.”
For several years, UNRWA has been suffering from major financial crises, which have reflected a decline in its ability to provide services to Palestinian refugees.
Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi urged the international community to diversify UNRWA’s funding sources within the framework of the principle of burden-sharing, and to call on donors to make multi-year pledges and abide by them.
UNRWA’s services include education, health care, relief, social services, infrastructure, camp improvement, protection and microfinance, according to its official website.
This post was last modified on November 17, 2022 7:36 pm