Donors respond to Northern Lebanon appeal – UNRWA press release

Donors Respond to Northern Lebanon Appeal

The United States, Norway and Italy are the first donor nations to respond to UNRWA's Emergency Appeal to fund the first year of rehabilitation and emergency assistance to the refugees from Nahr El Bared camp in northern Lebanon. The U.S. will contribute towards the appeal with 10 million US Dollars, Norway has decided to contribute 10 Million Norwegian Kroner (1,7 million US Dollars) while Italy announced it will contribute 2 million Euros (1,4 million US Dollars). Other donor nations have expressed a clear interest in contributing to the Northern Lebanon Appeal.

UNRWA has appealed to international donors for 55 million US Dollars to meet the emergency needs of the population of Nahr El Bared camp. The camp's infrastructure was largely put out of action by the fierce fighting that started there in the third week of May.

The appeal includes provisions for temporary shelter via rental assistance, construction of temporary shelters and support to host families, infrastructure, including water and sanitation, temporary employment, as well as basic services including humanitarian assistance, health care and education for the coming year. UNRWA has previously described this emergency appeal as a bridge between the present and the rebuilding of the camp.  In a further phase, UNRWA intends to develop a comprehensive reconstruction plan in co-operation with the Lebanese Government, the World Bank, UN Agencies, PLO, NGOs and the Palestinian community.