The UN Population Fund (UNFPA) will support more than 5,300 vulnerable women in Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem, using the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) electronic voucher platform.

WFP said in a press statement that UNFPA will use WFP's existing cash-transfer platform to provide every woman with US$100 loaded onto an electronic card. They can use the card to buy diverse food, personal hygiene and household hygiene products from WFP's 300 shops across Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

In Gaza, 4,000 women will benefit from this intervention in addition to 1,300 in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. The assistance will target the most vulnerable women and girls, including many who are at risk of gender-based violence, contributing to ensuring greater protection and enhancing their livelihoods and dignity.

Many families are forced to make difficult choices to deal with the financial and emotional stresses they are under. They sometimes resort to selling their assets or reducing the number of meals they eat. This assistance helps to alleviate some of these stresses. It comes at an opportune time as the recent “hostilities” witnessed across Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem have exacerbated the already challenging socio-economic situation created by the COVID-19 pandemic.

This intervention was made possible by the generous contributions of the Government of Canada, the Government of Spain, the United Nations Central Emergency Fund (CERF).

"We are extremely pleased to join forces with WFP to carry out this critical work," said UNFPA Representative to Palestine Kristine Blokhus. "Our two organizations share a commitment to providing much needed assistance to vulnerable Palestinian women and their families at this difficult time."

Earlier this year, UNFPA used WFP cash-transfer platform to provide assistance to 600 women in the West Bank and East Jerusalem who were subject to gender-based violence.

"We offer our innovative Cash-Based Transfer digital platform to all humanitarian and development organizations working in Palestine to meet people's multiple needs," said WFP Representative and Country Director Samer Abdeljaber. "WFP and UNFPA are bringing our unique expertise together through this strategic partnership to better serve the most vulnerable and continue to work towards saving and changing lives in Palestine."

The WFP platform serves tens of thousands of people in Gaza and the West Bank. More than ten UN organizations and INGOs used this platform in 2020-2021 to provide humanitarian assistance to vulnerable people, injecting US$4 million into the local economy.

Source : Safa