At the conference, the authorities of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for the Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) presented the Agency’s new strategy and vision. The strategy was developed as a result of reforms and experiences collected, among other things, in response to challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

One of the essential elements of the Agency’s new vision is the need to ensure a predictable and sustainable budget which would allow overcoming the funding crisis that the Agency has been going through over recent years. In this context, the conference underscored the significance of long-term support which would ensure UNRWA’s financial stability and of sustaining efforts for Palestinian refugees.
The conference participants were also invited to make short-term contributions to the Agency’s budget, which would allow maintaining its mandate activity this year.

For 15 years, Poland has been providing support to UNRWA in education, health care, and humanitarian aid for Palestinian refugees. Polish Aid has contributed almost PLN 19 m to this initiative, including PLN 1 m this year only. This year’s contribution went to Nuseirat Elementary School (Gaza) as part of the measure titled “Updated humanitarian and early recovery appeal - hostilities in Gaza and mounting tensions in the West Bank.” The appeal was issued to provide for the most urgent humanitarian needs of the population of the Gaza Strip and the Western Bank, which arose in the wake of the escalating conflict in these territories in spring 2021.

During the conference, Deputy Minister Paweł Jabłoński pledged an additional contribution of PLN 1 m to UNRWA still this year. 

 

Łukasz Jasina

MFA Spokesperson

 

Photo: Tymon Markowski / MFA