LONDON, August 24, 2011 (WAFA) - Britain Wednesday announced that it is speeding up assistance for the Palestinian Authority (PA) to help enable it to meet its commitments and continue its provision of essential services, such as immunization and primary school education, the British Foreign & Commonwealth Office said in a press release.
The PA faces a fiscal crisis as a result of a shortfall in funding from international donors. In July, Prime Minister Fayyad announced that the PA could only pay half the June salaries of public sector workers.
“The non-payment of PA salaries puts at risk the delivery of basic services in addition the effect on household finances and the wider economy could also be severe,” said the release. Currently, around a quarter of Palestinian households depend on a public sector wage earner.
The issue was raised by Fayyad with Development Minister Alan Duncan when he visited the occupied Palestinian Territory in July. The two ministers signed a memorandum of understanding for the existing DFID support package of £100 million for the occupied territories, which was due to begin in September.
Wednesday’s announcement sees £10 million of this being brought forward to August.
Duncan said that “although the PA has made excellent progress in reducing its budget deficit and reliance on external donor financing, it is unable to balance its own budget while the occupation and associated restrictions on movement and access in the West Bank and Gaza persist.”
He said that this aid ensures that public sector workers in the Palestinian Territory will receive a salary and be able to provide for their families, while providing much-needed services such as healthcare and education, which the PA will not be able to sustain without support from other donors.
Duncan added: “I strongly encourage other donors to step up their support for the Palestinian Authority, both in addressing the current funding shortfall, but also in providing long term predictable funding.”
The memorandum of understanding committed Britain to provide up to £100 million of direct financial support to the PA over 3 years in the form of a new state-building and service delivery grant.
DFID has arranged to pay the first £10 million of the state-building grant in August via the World Bank Palestinian Reform and Development Plan (PRDP) Trust Fund. The remaining £12.5m of the first funding tranche will be paid in October, after which DFID will follow a funding schedule to be agreed with the PA.
T.R./M.A.
