UNRWA calls for sustainable funding, warns of service cuts at meeting in Beirut
The Advisory Commission (AdCom) on the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) convened in Beirut on Wednesday and Thursday, amid immense concern over the alarming financial situation of the Agency.
In the two-day session, chaired by Dr. Bassel El Hassan, Chairman of the Lebanese Palestinian Dialogue Committee (LPDC), AdCom members actively engaged the UNRWA senior management on key issues related to the survival of the Agency and its services to Palestine Refugees.
UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini called on participants to increase sustainable and predictable funding to the Agency, reiterating the real risk and probable impact of a suspension of services on Palestine Refugees.
“The meeting of the AdCom this time should serve as an early warning of the looming disaster we will hit in September if we do not receive extra funding,” said Lazzarini. “Our budget is tight and cannot be further decreased if we are to deliver on our mandate,” he added, referring to the public-like services that UNRWA provides to Palestine Refugees in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, Gaza, Syria, Lebanon and Jordan.
“Without immediate additional funding, UNRWA will be unable to maintain operations beyond September, threatening the closure of over 700 schools and 140 health centers. Emergency services in all of our areas of operation will grind to a halt, leaving millions of Palestine Refugees, who are reliant on assistance from UNRWA, on the threshold of starvation. This is not the time to waver. The time has come to act,” he said.
El Hassan emphasized the urgent challenges that require immediate attention in light of UNRWA's severe financial crisis: "This crisis has significantly affected the present and future circumstances of Palestine refugees in host countries," he said, adding, "There is a crucial need to convert political support into action, particularly in addressing the alarming stagnation of the Agency's financial resources."
Young Palestine Refugees engaged directly with AdCom members around the issues of youth and women empowerment, and mental health, bringing in their own voices to conversations about them. With examples of initiatives they created in the fields of community support, arts and cultural expression, they brought the reality of their daily lives in the camps closer to the AdCom members.
The Commissioner-General reiterated his urgent call for all donors to confirm their solidarity with Palestine Refugees with flexible, long-term funding until a political solution for their plight is realized. This meeting of the Advisory Commission comes on the heels of the International Pledging Conference on UNRWA earlier this month in New York. While UNRWA was seeking to cover its most urgent core and emergency requirements of around US$ 300 million for this year, the Agency received only US$ 13 million in fresh funding.
“The human, political and security implications of the dead-end that we are heading towards are huge. Human suffering in the region would reach new heights. And the cost for the international community would be far beyond what it would cost to bridge UNRWA’s chronic underfunding. Our responsibility towards Palestine Refugees is to lead the transformation of UNRWA to make it a sustainable Agency that supports Palestine Refugee rights. My priority remains to responsibly accompany this transformation,” said Commissioner-General Lazzarini.
Source: Naharnet
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