UNRWA chief lauds support by Arab Gulf countries
BRUSSELS: The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) Commissioner-General Pierre Krahenbuhl heaped praise yesterday on Arab Gulf countries for their continued support to the Palestinian people. “We have been quite successful in reaching out in particular to Saudi Arabia, to the UAE and Kuwait who are active supporters of UNRWA. Saudi Arabia today is the third largest donor to the organizations after the US and the EU,” he told the European Parliament’s foreign affairs committee in Brussels.
“I think that is a very significant sign. They have traditionally supported a lot of the reconstruction work, rebuilding homes and installations for example in the Gaza strip, helping us to renovate schools from Jordan to the West Bank and elsewhere,” he noted.
“We are seeing increased support by Saudi Arabia and the UAE to our core activities, education, healthcare and others which is a very welcome in that regard,” said the UNRWA chief who briefed the EP committee on the activities of UNRWA. He said that today there are 5.3 million Palestine refugees between the Gaza Strip, West Bank, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon. “This is a considerable number of people for whom we have direct responsibility to provide services,” he said. He pointed out that UNRWA has 270,000 students in the Gaza strip in 260 schools. But 90 percent of those have never left the Gaza strip in their lives and 65 percent will not find a job in the Gaza strip.
“This is a time to create a political horizon for Palestinian youth in the region. There is an element of a time bomb if one does not address many of the human consequences,” warned Krahenbuhl. He thanked the EU for its strong support but added that UNRWA still has a shortfall of $77 million. “We will be actively reaching to other countries in the Gulf and elsewhere to ensure that it will close this shortfall,” he said. Meanwhile, David Mcallister, Chair of the EP Committee, thanked UNRWA for the important work to offer a decent life for the 5 million Palestinian refugees. He said that the EU considers UNRWA a crucial component for peace, security and development in the Middle East. The UNRWA chief also inaugurated a new exhibition in the European Parliament which focuses on EU Support for UN Schools in the Middle East.