India provides USD 2 mn aid to UN agency working for Palestinian refugees
- India has given USD 2 million in aid to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency working for the welfare of Palestinian refugees in support of its core programmes and services, including education and health, amidst the coronavirus crisis.
- India had increased its annual contribution to the UNRWA from USD 1.25 million in 2016 to USD 5 million in 2019.
- It pledged another USD 5 million for 2020 which opens its way to become a member of the agency’s advisory commission, according to official sources.
- The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) applauded India’s financial support to keep its basic services operating, especially under the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
- The contribution was presented to the UN agency by the Representative of India (ROI) to the State of Palestine, Sunil Kumar.
- “The continued determination and commitment of India in support of the Palestine refugees is commendable, in particular under the current circumstances brought on us by COVID-19,”
- India’s contribution will support the agency’s “dire” financial situation due to the funding gaps that risk its core services to the Palestinian refugees in the fields of education and health.
- About 3.1 million Palestine refugees depend on health services provided by the UNRWA. At the same time, the agency’s schools educate 526,000 students every year, of which half are female.
- The agency was created in December 1949 by the UN to support the relief and human development of Palestinian refugees.
- The UNRWA definition of “refugee” covers Palestinians who fled or were expelled from their homes during the 1948 War.
About UNRWA-
- The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) is an UN agency created in December 1949 to support the relief and human development of Palestinian refugees.
- The UNRWA definition of “refugee” covers Palestinian who fled or were expelled from their homes during the 1948 Palestine War.
- UNRWA also provides assistance, but not refugee status, to those who fled or were expelled during and following the 1967 Six Day War.
- Formation- 8 December 1949
- Headquarters – Amman, Jordan and GAZA
- Commissioner General – Christian Saunders
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