GAZA, May 13, 2015
(WAFA) – Germany has announced a new €37 million ($41 million) contribution to
the UNRWA shelter assistance program in Gaza, said the UNRWA in a press release Wednesday.
UNRWA said it has so far
received funding to rebuild only 200 of the 9,161 Palestine refugee homes that
have been assessed as totally destroyed, adding that this new contribution will
allow it to further develop its shelter assistance response. All of this
funding has come from Germany, according to the agency.
Director of UNRWA
Operations in Gaza, Robert Turner, said: “The support from Germany for
reconstruction and recovery in Gaza has been extraordinary. More than eight
months after the summer 2014 conflict ended, the situation in Gaza remains
desperate and the people of Gaza urgently need other donors to follow the
excellent example set by Germany.”
With a total
contribution of €80 million ($93 million) to UNRWA programs in Gaza to date,
Germany is the second largest supporter of the UNRWA response to the
humanitarian crisis resulting from the 2014 conflict.
The new donation was
announced by Parliamentary State Secretary of the German Federal Ministry for
Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), Thomas Silberhorn, during a visit
to Gaza on 12 May.
Speaking from Gaza, Silberhorn
said: “Germany will continue to support reconstruction efforts in Gaza as an
integral part of German-Palestinian development cooperation. Our cooperation
with UNRWA in supporting Palestinian refugees in Gaza is crucial to reach the
most vulnerable and to contribute to better living conditions.”
In 2014, Germany was the
fifth-largest UNRWA donor in overall terms, with a total contribution of $79
million.
M.N./T.R.
