An official at the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) said on Wednesday that the agency is facing the "most serious financial crisis" in its history, due to the severe shortage of donations to it.
Adnan Abu Hasna, media advisor to UNRWA, told reporters in Gaza that the agency "has to manage its financial affairs now on a monthly basis, due to the severe decline in donations and the American administration cut all aid to UNRWA."
Abu Hasna said, "UNRWA" launched a budget for this year in the amount of one billion and 400 million dollars, but what it has received so far is 391 million dollars, and what is available to it is enough for the salaries of next month, and you will have a real problem until the end of the year.
He attributed the cause of the crisis to the US decision to cut $ 360 million from UNRWA at the beginning of 2018, which represented 30 per cent of the agency´s budget that relies entirely on donations.
Abu Hasna mentioned that "UNRWA" has more than 30 thousand employees, 5.6 million receive aid at various levels in the field of health, social services and education, and about 533 thousand students in more than 700 schools in different regions of the Middle East, and all these services are threatened Currently.
UNRWA was established by a resolution of the United Nations General Assembly in 1949 to serve approximately five million Palestine refugees registered with it in its five regions: Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, the West Bank, and Gaza Strip.
Agency services include education, health care, relief, social services, infrastructure, camp improvement, and microcredit.
