Qatar Charity sends 18 trucks of aid to Gaza – UNRWA press release

PRESS RELEASE
10 December 2009

Qatar Charity sends 18 trucks of aid to Gaza

Amman, 10 December 2009

Gaza – An 18-truck convoy of books and stationery has reached the Gaza Strip. The generous in-kind donation worth approximately 10 million Qatari riyals (approximately $2.7 million) was sent by the Qatar Charity organization in an effort to support the neediest students at public, private, and UNRWA schools.

This in-kind contribution was dispatched from Jordan as part of an international convoy of 30 trucks carrying 390 tonnes of stationery, food items, medical supplies and other non-food items for the Gaza Strip. The charity’s generous donation will help address the severe shortage of school materials in the Gaza Strip, which until recently have been prevented from entering by the Israeli authorities.

UNRWA’s Commissioner-General, Karen AbuZayd, was pleased with the donation. She said: "The refugees have needs that are usually better addressed by cash donations but when a partner such as Qatar Charity sends $2.7 million worth of supplies to assist the population with a particular need, I can only salute this very generous gesture. It will make life a little bit easier for many schoolchildren in the Gaza Strip". Karen AbuZayd added that "Qatar Charity has become one of UNRWA’s biggest donors in the Gulf".

Earlier in the year, the Qatar Charity pledged $10 million to support job creation and cash assistance schemes in the Gaza Strip. The project is currently under implementation.

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