AMMAN — Despite a generous US donation to
UNRWA,
the agency which provides essential healthcare, education and other services to
millions of Palestinian refugees, said it will remain short of money this year.
اضافة اعلان
Last Friday,
US President Joe Biden announced from
Bethlehem in the Israeli-occupied West Bank an additional $201 million aid to
UNRWA.
The White House said the new contribution
strengthens Washington’s status as UNRWA’s largest donor, following the arrival
of more than $618 million during the Biden era.
UNRWA suffers from a chronic budget deficit, which
it blames on the shortfall of promised contributions from donor nations. UNRWA,
which employs 30,000 employees, announced a $1.6 billion budget for this year.
The agency provides basic services, including
education and healthcare to 5.7 million Palestinian refugees scattered across
Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, the West Bank and the
Gaza Strip. The US estimates that
more than 2.3 million Palestinian refugees live in poverty, partly caused by
economic hardships and health hazards in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
UNRWA Spokesperson
Tamara Al-Rifai told
Jordan
News that the US contributions place Washington back on top of UNRWA’s
donors list, a spot the US commanded for several years until former US
President Donald Trump cut aid to the international agency.
“UNRWA greatly appreciates the American support,”
she said. “The US has returned to the first place among the countries
supporting UNRWA.”
Under President Biden, the US allocated $618 million
to UNRWA in 2021 and 2022, “meaning more than $300 million for each of the two
years,” according to Rifai.
She explained that UNRWA’s budget for 2022 is $1.6
billion, which covers all basic services such as education, health, social
protection, and emergency aid resulting from the crises in Syria and Gaza.
“Efforts are still continuing to mobilize the full
amount required for this year,” Rifai said. “And we still expect a deficit of
about $100 million.”
UNRWA’s media advisor Adnan Abu Hasna told
Jordan
News that the American aid to the agency “is very important, not only in
terms of financial support, but also in terms of political support”.
“There was an indication of the great role that
UNRWA plays in providing services and human development to millions of
Palestinian refugees and achieving stability in the region”, he said.
Abu Hasna asserted that there “will be a financial
deficit that will not be overcome, despite the US aid”.
He said to ease the
burdens of the deficit, UNRWA was trying its best to increase its donor base,
and “we have different partnerships with UN organizations, zakat institutions,
and the private sector as well as adjusting expenditure within UNRWA”.
Rafiq Al-Khirfan, the director-general of the
Department of Palestinian affairs, told
Jordan News that UNRWA has gone
through difficult times, including a $465 million deficit recorded during the Trump
administration in 2018.
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