India has donated US$ 2.5 million to the UN agency for Palestinian
refugees, prompting the UNRWA to welcome the generous contribution at a “difficult
time”, particularly in Gaza on Tuesday.
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees
(UNRWA), functional since 1950, carries out direct relief and work programmes
for registered Palestine refugees. It is funded almost entirely by voluntary
contributions from UN Member States.
India on Monday gave UNRWA US$ 2.5 million as part of its annual
contribution of US$ 5 million for the year 2023-24 to support the agency’s core
programmes and services, including education, healthcare, relief, and social
services provided to Palestinian refugees, said the Representative Office of
India at Ramallah.
The contribution was handed over by the Representative of India (ROI) to
Palestine, Renu Yadav, to the Director of Partnerships, Department of External
Relations of UNRWA, Karim Amer.
The ROI underlined India’s continued support for the agency’s activities
in the region and the services it provides to Palestinian refugees during the
handover ceremony at UNRWA’s field office in Jerusalem, said an official press
release.
“Confirming that UNRWA received a very generous contribution from India
yesterday (Monday), which is most welcome during these difficult times and in
the face of huge needs across the region, particularly in Gaza,” a spokesperson
for UNRWA, Tamara Alrifai, told PTI.
The UNRWA has been struggling to provide basic services to hundreds of
thousands of Palestinians since the October 7 Israel-Hamas conflict, which has
prompted more than two-thirds of the Gaza population – of approximately 2.3
million – to flee their homes.
Earlier on November 19, India had delivered 32 tonnes of “humanitarian
assistance to the people of Palestine” via the El-Arish Airport in Egypt. Since
2018, India has given US$ 27.5 million to UNRWA.
During an Extraordinary Virtual Ministerial Pledging Conference for UNRWA
held on June 23, 2020, India announced that it would contribute US$ 10 million
to UNRWA over the next two years.
Prior to the war in Gaza, UNRWA was already facing an increased demand
for services resulting from a growth in the number of registered Palestine
refugees, the extent of their vulnerability, and their deepening poverty.
The agency is mandated to provide assistance and protection to some 5.6
million Palestine refugees registered with it across its five fields of
operation.
Its mission is to help Palestine refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, West
Bank, including East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip achieve their full human
development potential, pending a just and lasting solution to their plight.
UNRWA services encompass education, health care, relief and social
services, camp infrastructure and improvement, protection, and microfinance
among Palestinian refugees.
During the first-ever Indian Prime Minister’s visit to Palestine in
February 2018, India increased its annual financial contribution fourfold to
the UNRWA core budget, from USD 1.25 million to US$ 5 million.
India has also made a strong appeal to other traditional donors of UNRWA
to consider enhancing their contributions as well as to non-donor member States
to consider contributing to the agency in solidarity with the Palestine
refugees.
PTI
