– As delivered –

Statement by H.E. Mrs. María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés, President of the 73rd Session of the UN General Assembly

27 September 2018

UNRWA Lunch

Excellencies,

Mr. Secretary-General

Colleagues,

Ladies and Gentlemen:

The Secretary-General has already outlined our sentiments very well, however let me begin by expressing my deep appreciation to the Governments of Jordan, Sweden, Turkey, Japan and Germany as well as the EU for convening this much-needed discussion.

Colleagues, as we celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights this week, it is telling that UNRWA, which supports efforts to uphold the rights for 5.4 million Palestine refugees, is at risk. If we needed any reminder of the consequences of the attacks on multilateralism, the plight of UNRWA and Palestinians stands as proof.

To be clear: UNRWA provides education, healthcare, and livelihood support to millions of Palestine refugees, all of whom have the same rights as we do.

I believe that is why we are here – to ensure the effectiveness and capacity of an institution on which women, children and men depend for their most basic and fundamental rights and needs.

My friends, I thus welcome this initiative to discuss concrete ways forward. Lives are at stake.

On that note, I propose 3 recommendations:

* In the Short term:

We must address the immediate deficit – and the figure I have is 185 million dollars – to preserve the dignity of Palestinian refugees through donor contributions and new partnerships.

* In the medium term:

UNRWA’s management reforms should continue, with a focus on sustainability and impact of operations.

In parallel, we must make every effort to secure a comprehensive peaceful solution based on the vision of a region where two democratic states, Israel and Palestine, live side by side in peace, with secure and recognized borders, on the basis of international law, United Nations resolutions and international agreements.

Excellencies, allow me to extend my appreciation to those countries that have come forward with support to UNRWA. By raising over 200 million dollars in 6 months, the international community has ensured that — among other essential services — schools were able to open this semester.

This is truly commendable and encouraging. Now let us take this to the next step.

As President of the General Assembly, I have made it clear that the Palestinian issue will remain a priority for the United Nations. We need to prove that the UN is capable to deliver when it is needed. We need to be more relevant to all people, including the Palestinians.

Thank you very much.