A UN report considered that the past year "was a year of setbacks for the Palestinians, their institutionsو and their economy, due to the Coronavirus pandemic and the unprecedented financial crisis."

The UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Tor Wennesland , on Friday issued a report, stressing that “more than half of the Palestinians now need humanitarian assistance, at a time when Palestinian economic and social development is witnessing its worst years since 1994."

Besides He warned that "the humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian Territory will worsen and will have negative effects on the Palestinian development for many years to come."

“Nearly 150 thousand Palestinians lost their jobs last year due to the Coronavirus pandemic and this is expected to cause similar negative effects due to the currently imposed closures,” said Wennesland. 

He added "The Palestinian economy has contracted by between 10 and 12 percent, which is one of the largest annual downturns since the establishment of the Palestinian Authority in 1994”.

However, the report indicated that since the beginning of February this year, Coronavirus vaccines have begun to reach Palestine.

The United Nations provides the necessary support to the Palestinian government through the Kovacs mechanism, which is a mechanism of the World Health Organization that deals with the fair availability of Covid-19 vaccines all over the world.

The report called on the international community to support a wide range of humanitarian and development projects, in addition to technical support to help the Palestinian government to implement its economic reform pledges, confirming the importance of reintegrating the West Bank and Gaza Strip to face the economic challenges and difficulties.

Source : Safa