With the United States and several Western countries suspending support for UNRWA’s in response to Israeli accusing some UNRWA employees of collaborating with Hamas during its attack on Gaza on October 7, 2023, questions about the impact of funding cessation on the Palestinian-Lebanese situation arise. “Information International” published a detailed report attempting to answer this question.
What does UNRWA provide?
UNRWA is dedicated to providing medical care, education, social services, and infrastructure in 58 Palestinian camps across the West Bank, Gaza, Syria, Jordan, and Lebanon. Its annual budget is about $1.6 billion, including operational expenses of $820 million and emergency programs and works costing $780 million. UNRWA employs 30,000 staff and operates 702 schools and 140 health centers and hospitals. In Lebanon, there are 489,293 registered Palestinians with UNRWA, and the agency spends about $260 million annually in the country, including $12 million on health, managing 27 health centers with 421 employees, and $40 million on education, running 64 schools with 38,205 students (including 1,707 Lebanese students) and employing 1,656 teachers. UNRWA also covers the rent for properties and lands occupied by Palestinian camps and takes care of the camps’ infrastructure services.
In detail, countries like the USA, UK, Australia, Italy, Finland, Germany, Austria, and Japan announced the cessation of funding to the agency. These contributions account for about $1.2 billion, which is 75% of the total expenses, significantly affecting UNRWA’s operations in Lebanon and other countries, including camps in occupied Palestine. Some may view the funding cessation as a move towards settlement in Lebanon.
International human rights opinions.
Not only “Information International,” but many research and human rights centers have issued reports on the danger of halting UNRWA funding. The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor stated that “suspending funding amid an imminent famine in Gaza amounts to complicity and participation in the crime of genocide.” The monitor also warned of the “serious consequences of many donor countries suspending their funding to UNRWA, given the current catastrophic conditions,” describing the decision as “a serious violation of these countries’ international obligations, especially regarding the protection of the Palestinian people from the crime of genocide.”
Dorothy Klaus, UNRWA’s Director of Affairs in Lebanon, said in a press conference after meeting with Lebanon’s caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati in Beirut, “The suspension of funding to the UN agency will have significant implications for Palestinian refugees in Lebanon.” She added, “We know that the Lebanese government is facing a significant crisis while hosting this large number of refugees, and our efforts continue in dialoguing and speaking with donors, to explain to them the sensitive and delicate situation of the Palestinian refugees, where a large number of them live below the poverty line in Lebanon.” Klaus pointed out that “UNRWA can secure services until the end of March in the current situation, and the organization does not have any alternative plan.”
Jawad Adra is a co-founder of “Information International”, an independent research and statistics company established in Beirut in 1995. “Information International” publishes research, surveys, economic, financial, social, and cultural topics of interest to citizens and officials, in addition to periodic public opinion polls on various topics.
In addition to leading “Information International,” Jawad Adra co-founded Nabu Museum, located in El-Heri, North Lebanon. Nabu Museum provides a space for displaying artworks and acts as an institution for preserving communities’ connection to their culture through educational programs, training sessions, organized tours, public lectures, and guided exhibitions.
Summary:
UNRWA’s spending in Lebanon amounts to about $260 million annually. What are the implications of stopping funding for Palestinian refugees in Lebanon? And is there a direction towards settlement? A report by Information International answers these questions.
