12 December 2013 – Statement on Assistance to the Palestinian People

Statement by H.E. Ambassador Dr. Riyad Mansour, Permanent Observer of the State of Palestine to the United Nations, before the United Nations General Assembly, 68th Session, on agenda item 70(b) “Assistance to the Palestinian people”, 12 December 2013:                                         

 (Check against delivery)

Mr. President,

We meet today to consider the issue of the strengthening of the coordination of humanitarian and disaster relief assistance, including assistance to the Palestinian people, a people who have been suffering for many decades from occupation and the denial of the exercise of their inalienable rights.

The international community has determined that assistance to the Palestinian people is a vital element and collective responsibility in the efforts to achieve peace and stability in the region.  Here, I extend, on behalf of the State of Palestine and the Palestinian people, our profound gratitude and appreciation to all peoples, Governments and international organizations that have provided financial support in the framework of this assistance, which is being undertaken through concrete programs and projects that offer significant developmental support to the Palestinian people while also contributing to their resilience under adverse circumstances, giving them hope and assurances that they are not alone and that the world is supporting them in the quest for a brighter future for their children. [Read more…]

United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) – Area Programme for Palestinian children and women in Jordan, Lebanon, the Syrian Arab Republic and the State of Palestine

UNICEF has an Area Programme for Palestinian children and women in Jordan, Lebanon, the Syrian Arab Republic and the State of Palestine.

The Current programme for 2011-2013 was recently extended by the Executive Director of UNICEF for one year until 31 December 2014.

The area programme is managed by the UNICEF Middle East and North Africa Regional Office, and each country office implements its component of the programme in Jordan, Lebanon, the Syrian Arab Republic and the State of Palestine. The programme is very extensive, with projects in many areas of child development,  including education, protection, health, nutrition, and water sanitation.

United Nations Populations Fund (UNFPA) – State of Palestine

UNFPA is committed to offering support to the State of Palestine within the framework of the UN system’s efforts and in coordination with the international donor community. For more than twenty years of its work in Palestine, UNFPA contributed to the development of reproductive health strategies, upgraded the provision of services, contributed to building information systems and helped build the capacity of Palestine’s State institutions and civil society. Its programming achieves a good balance between long-term development and short-term humanitarian needs.

UNDP Progamme of Assistance to the Palestinian People (PAPP)

United Nations Development Programme’s Programme of Assistance to the Palestinian People (PAPP) derives its mandate from the United Nations General Assembly Resolution 33/147 of 20 December 1978. Called upon by United Nations Member States in that year, UNDP was requested “to improve the economic and social conditions of the Palestinian people by identifying their social and economic needs and by establishing concrete projects to that end”. UNDP/PAPP is a responsive development agency that works together with the Palestine’s State institutions and directly with the Palestinian people to fulfill their aspiration for sustainable human development based on self-determination, equality and freedom.

United Nations Seminar on Assistance to the Palestinian People, FAO Headquarters, Rome, 27 and 28 February 2013

The Seminar, organized by the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, was the first such gathering since the General Assembly voted decisively in November 2012 to accord Palestine non-Member observer State status at the United Nations.

Experts, joined by senior Palestinian officials, weighed the challenges and opportunities of developing a self-sustaining economy in the new reality of a State under occupation. While agreeing that the principal issues in Palestine were not economical but political, they nevertheless outlined programmes aimed at rebuilding the severely eroded Palestinian agriculture sector, ensuring high governance standards, and generating donor support for the reconstruction of Gaza.

Experts stressed that the conditions of humanitarian strife in the West Bank and Gaza — severe restrictions on movement and constraints on livelihoods — were man-made, with the occupation practices creating a “protection crisis”. If allowed, the Palestinian people could effectively address their challenges themselves.

Participants hailed the remarkable multi-sectoral achievements of the Palestinian Government and expressed appreciation of the vital efforts of the United Nations, the donor community, Palestinian and international civil society organizations and the private sector.

Expressing gratitude for unwavering support, Palestinian officials at the meeting asked the donor community to challenge Israel’s detrimental policies on the ground by supporting reconstruction in Gaza and projects that would connect the West Bank to East Jerusalem, by promoting the development of Area C, and by demanding that settlement products be labeled as such. They urged to look for new ideas on how to move forward, while sharing a unanimous sentiment of seminar participants that a small window of opportunity, opening on the political front following the last year’s General Assembly resolution, should not be missed.