PNN Services
ِArabic
PNN Palestine News Network
PNN TV Reports
UN agencies call for the immediate release of a seriously ill Palestinian child detained in Israel
EU : Israeli settlement expansion, demolitions and evictions are illegal under international law
Israeli forces tear down Palestinian home, displace 18 residents in Sheikh Jarrah
Israel advances settler expansion plan in occupied Jerusalem, imperils Palestinian contiguity
Racism and Incitement Index 2021: Increase in Racism and Incitement against Palestinians and Arabs During the Year
EU: children imprisonment against international law & administrative detention must be stopped
Settlements Security Officers point their guns At Palestinians, taking law into own hands
EU on demolitions in East Jerusalem: illegal under international lawj
Israeli forces shoot and kill a Palestinian man south of Bethlehem
Palestinian anti-occupation activist dies of injuries after Israeli vehicle runs him over
UNRWA chief warns Palestinian refugee agency facing funding shortfall
01/12/2021 Human Rights 6,002 Views
Bethlehem/PNN/
The head of the UN's relief agency for Palestinian refugees has warned of the consequence of a major funding crisis, saying it was unable to pay 28,000 employees on time this month and may cut vital services to millions of people.
Speaking to reporters in Jordan on Tuesday, Philippe Lazzarini, Commissioner-General of United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), said the staff went on strike after being informed that salaries would be delayed but halted the action following mediation.
"If UNRWA health services are compromised in the middle of a global pandemic, COVID-19 vaccination rollout will come to an end. Maternal and childcare will stop, half a million girls and boys not knowing if they can continue learning, and over two million of the poorest Palestinian refugees will not get cash and food assistance," he said.
"The humanitarian needs of Palestinian refugees keep increasing while funding to the agency has stagnated since 2013."
Lazzarini also noted that UNRWA had raised enough donations at a recent conference in Brussels to cover up to 48% of its budget in 2022 and 2023.
The agency, he added, generated $60 million toward a $100 million shortfall until the end of the year to keep services running.
"I'm still not yet in a position to say when the November salaries will be paid," he said.
UNRWA is responsible for helping nearly 5.7 million Palestinian refugees in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip as well as Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon, by running schools, food distribution programs, and health clinics.
It went through a management crisis in 2019 when its previous head resigned amid allegations of sexual misconduct, nepotism, and other abuses of authority at the agency.
UNRWA was hit hard in 2018 when former president Donald Trump halted US funding. However, the re-engagement of the US under President Joe Biden has been offset by the lack of commitments from the Persian Gulf Arab states, and by decreases in grants from other countries such as the UK.
Lazzarini said that the resumption of US support for the Palestinian refugee agency this year was offset by a reduction in funding by other donors.
Bethlehem/PNN/ The European Union said today that the imprisonment of children by Israel is against …
News from China
Full text: 2022 New Year address by President Xi Jinping
Profile: Xi Jinping, the man who leads CPC on new journey
Xi Focus-Closeup: All aboard China's express train to development
20 years after WTO entry, China delivers global dividends
All Rights Reserved © Palestine News Network 2018