AMMAN — UNRWA Commissioner General Pierre Krähenbühl again called on donors to renew their support to the agency at its Advisory Commission meetings in Jordan on Tuesday.

 

The two-day meetings covered the current state of UNRWA’s budget shortfall for programmes aiding Palestinian refugees in the Gaza Strip and West Bank (including East Jerusalem), Jordan, Lebanon and Syria, a statement from the agency said.

 

The agency was left with a $446 million deficit last year after the US decided to reduce its funding from $350 million to $60 million. However, 42 countries banded together to fill the gap in 2018, Krähenbühl said, calling on them to do the same this year. 

 

The commissioner general highlighted an upcoming pledge conference in New York on June 25, reiterating the need to “stay on a successful collective path for the sake of the Palestine refugee community”.

 

“Never was the support of hosts and donors more remarkable than in 2018... We need them to give UNRWA the same support this year,” Krähenbühl said in the statement. 

 

Prior to the meeting, a performance assessment of UNRWA commissioned by donors found that the agency was “competent, resilient and resolute”, the statement added.