{"id":287892,"date":"2023-06-21T10:31:40","date_gmt":"2023-06-21T14:31:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/?post_type=document&p=287892"},"modified":"2023-06-26T10:34:12","modified_gmt":"2023-06-26T14:34:12","slug":"unrwa-press-release-21june2023","status":"publish","type":"document","link":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/unispal\/document\/unrwa-press-release-21june2023\/","title":{"rendered":"UNRWA Commissioner-General Calls for Sustainability of the Agency’s Services to Millions of Palestine Refugees at Advisory Commission Meeting – Press Release"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n
21 June 2023<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
Arabic: \u0627\u0644\u0639\u0631\u0628\u064a\u0629<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n

High-level bi-annual meeting discusses\u00a0urgent financial situation\u00a0of the Agency\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n

BEIRUT,<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

The Advisory Commission (<\/span>AdCom<\/span>) on the Â鶹APP Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA)\u00a0<\/span>convened<\/span>\u00a0in Beirut on 20 and 21 June, amid immense concern over the alarming financial situation of the Agency. In the two-day session, chaired by Dr.\u00a0<\/span>Bassel<\/span>\u00a0E<\/span>l\u00a0<\/span>Hassan,\u00a0<\/span>Chairman<\/span>\u00a0of the Lebanese Palestinian Dialogue Committee (LPDC),\u00a0<\/span>AdCom<\/span>\u00a0members actively engaged the UNRWA senior management on key issues related to the survival of the Agency and its services to Palestine Refugees.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

UNRWA Commissioner-General<\/span>\u00a0Philippe\u00a0<\/span>Lazzarini<\/span>\u00a0called 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.<\/span>\u202f<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

\u201c<\/span>The meeting of the\u00a0<\/span>AdCom<\/span>\u00a0this time should serve as an early warning of the looming disaster we will hit in September if we do not receive extra funding,\u201d said\u00a0<\/span>Lazzarini<\/span>. \u201cOur budget is tight and cannot be further decreased if we are to deliver on our mandate,\u201d he added, referring to the public-like services that UNRWA provides to Palestine Refugees in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, Gaza, Syria,\u00a0<\/span>Lebanon<\/span>\u00a0and Jordan.<\/span>\u202f<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

\u201cWithout immediate\u00a0<\/span>additional<\/span>\u00a0funding, UNRWA will be unable to\u00a0<\/span>maintain<\/span>\u00a0operations beyond September, threatening the closure of over 700 schools and 140 health\u00a0<\/span>centres<\/span>. Emergency services in\u00a0<\/span>all of<\/span>\u00a0o<\/span>ur areas of operation<\/span>\u00a0will\u00a0<\/span>grind to a halt<\/span>, leaving millions of Palestine Refugees, who are reliant on\u00a0<\/span>assistance<\/span>\u00a0from UNRWA, on the threshold of starvation. This is not the time to waver. The time has come to act,\u201d he said.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Dr. El Hassan emphasized the urgent challenges that require immediate attention\u00a0<\/span>in light of<\/span>\u00a0UNRWA’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.”<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Young Palestine\u00a0<\/span>R<\/span>efugees engaged directly with\u00a0<\/span>AdCom<\/span>\u00a0members around the issues of youth and women empowerment, and mental health, bringing in their own voices to conversations about them. With examples of\u00a0<\/span>initiatives<\/span>\u00a0they created in the fields of community support,\u00a0<\/span>arts<\/span>\u00a0and cultural expression, they brought the reality of their daily lives in the camps closer to the\u00a0<\/span>AdCom<\/span>\u00a0members.\u00a0<\/span>\u202f<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u00a0International Pledging Conference<\/a>\u00a0on 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.<\/span>\u202f<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

\u201c<\/span>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\u2019s chronic underfunding. Our responsibility towards Palestine\u00a0<\/span>R<\/span>efugees is to lead the transformation of UNRWA to make it a sustainable Agency that supports Palestine\u00a0<\/span>R<\/span>efugee rights. My priority\u00a0<\/span>remains<\/span>\u00a0to responsibly\u00a0<\/span>accompany<\/span>\u00a0this transformation,<\/span>\u201d said Commissioner-General\u00a0<\/span>Lazzarini<\/span>.<\/span>\u202f<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n

ENDs -\u202f<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

 <\/p>\n

Notes to Editors<\/span>\u202f\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n