The European Union is supporting the response to the COVID-19 pandemic in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip by contributing €4 million to the COVID-19 Flash Appeal of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), which identifies the most immediate needs to combat the coronavirus pandemic.

The EU Service for Foreign Policy Instruments (FPI) is financing the project for a period of twelve months through the Instrument Contributing to Stability and Peace (IcSP). This contribution will help stabilize the strained UNRWA health centres in both the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, so that they can better respond to the pandemic, with a specific emphasis on the most vulnerable in the population.

This twelve-month action aims to support UNRWA, in particular the occupied Palestinian territory, to continue providing primary, and in the current situation potentially life-saving, healthcare services. It will allow the Agency to adapt and equip its health centres in Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, which cater to approximately 1.2 million individuals, for the COVID-19 emergency response.

The action will also support the operation of medical hotlines and the dissemination of COVID-19 information by text message (SMS). Funding will cover hospitalization costs for approximately 5,000 urgent non-COVID-19 cases to alleviate pressure on the public health system, thus allowing the system to concentrate its attention on COVID-19 cases.

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Press release