UNRWA BREAKS GROUND FOR HUSN SCHOOL
Arabic text: http://www.unrwa.org/ar/newsroom/press-releases/
Amman
On 6 November, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) broke ground for a boys’ school in the Palestine refugee camp of Husn, in northern Jordan. The ceremony was conducted by Acting Director of UNRWA Operations in Jordan Anna Segall.
The construction of the Husn school is supported by the Regional Programme for the Improvement of Living Conditions of Palestinian Refugee Camps (REPAC), an initiative of the Government of Germany through the KfW Entwicklungsbank.
At the ceremony, Ms. Segall thanked the Government of Germany for its generous contributions, saying: “The construction of extensions to the boys’ and girls’ schools in Husn camp will provide the community with additional classrooms, washroom facilities and newly equipped playgrounds. The girls’ school will benefit from the addition of storage space and a student cafeteria, while the boys’ school will be outfitted with a new computer lab.”
In Jordan, UNRWA is implementing three projects through REPAC, chosen after extensive consultation with local communities and based on the camp priority list and project selection criteria. Along with the schools in Husn, the Agency will work on shelter rehabilitation in Husn and in another Palestine refugee camp, Talbieh. In both camps, UNRWA will work to improve the living conditions of Palestine refugees who currently suffer from issues including asbestos sheeting, unsafe structures and overcrowding.
The Government of Germany commissioned KfW Entwicklungsbank to develop and execute a regional programme to improve living conditions in Palestine refugee camps and adjacent areas in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and the occupied Palestinian territory as part of its effort to support peaceful development in the region. REPAC now aims to build, extend or rehabilitate the social and economic infrastructure in selected priority camps, while also supporting the self-determined development processes of the Palestine refugee communities.
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BACKGROUND INFORMATION
UNRWA is a United Nations agency established by the General Assembly in 1949 and is mandated to provide assistance and protection to a population of some 5 million registered Palestine refugees. Its mission is to help Palestine refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, West Bank and the Gaza Strip to achieve their full potential in human development, pending a just solution to their plight. UNRWA’s services encompass education, health care, relief and social services, camp infrastructure and improvement, and microfinance.
Financial support to UNRWA has not kept pace with an increased demand for services caused by growing numbers of registered refugees, expanding need, and deepening poverty. As a result, the Agency's General Fund (GF), supporting UNRWA’s core activities and 97 per cent reliant on voluntary contributions, has begun each year with a large projected deficit. Currently the deficit stands at US$ 54.3 million.
For more information, please contact:
Anwar Abu-Sakieneh
Public Information Officer – Jordan Field Office
Mobile:
+962 (0) 79 5671 888
Office:
+962 (0) 79 5671 888
Document Sources: United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA)
Country: Jordan
Subject: Assistance, Children, Education and culture, Refugee camps, Refugees and displaced persons
Publication Date: 12/11/2013