Report of the Working Group on the Financing of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (A/79/329)

30 August 2024

Seventy-ninth session

Item 48 of the provisional agenda

United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East

Report of the Working Group on the Financing of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East

Rapporteur: Anne Havn (Norway)

Summary

The present report of the Working Group on the Financing of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East provides a description of the activities of the Group in 2024 and a detailed outline of the current financial situation of the Agency. The Working Group adopted the report on 26 August.^a As in previous reports of the Group, the present report closes with concluding remarks addressed to all Member States.

^a The United States of America has dissociated itself from the present report.

I. Introduction

1. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) was established under General Assembly resolution 302 (IV), and its mandate was most recently renewed by the Assembly until 30 June 2026 in its resolution 77/123, in which the Assembly affirmed the necessity of the continuation of the work of UNRWA pending the just resolution of the question of the Palestine refugees.
2. The Working Group on the Financing of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East was established by the General Assembly under resolution 2656 (XXV) to study all aspects of the financing of the Agency.
3. The Working Group consists of the representatives of France, Ghana, Japan, Lebanon, Norway, Trinidad and Tobago, Türkiye, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United States of America. It is currently chaired by the Permanent Representative of Türkiye, Ahmet Yıldız.
4. At its twenty-sixth session and at all subsequent sessions, the General Assembly has considered the reports submitted to it by the Working Group (in 2023, 78/314) and adopted resolutions relating to UNRWA and the Working Group, taking note of the efforts of the Working Group (the most recent being resolution 78/73).

II. Background

5. UNRWA was entrusted by the international community with the responsibility to provide core services, protection and humanitarian assistance to Palestine refugees across the Agency’s area of operations: Jordan, Lebanon, the Syrian Arab Republic, the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip. Throughout its 75-year history, and in the context of the continued unresolved plight of almost 6 million Palestine refugees, UNRWA has been confronted with persistent shortfalls in funding that have severely challenged the Agency’s ability to fully implement its mandate in providing assistance and protection to Palestine refugees.
6. The humanitarian problems faced by Palestine refugees today must be addressed as a shared international responsibility, pending a just and durable solution of the Palestine refugee question, in accordance with international law, including relevant resolutions of the United Nations.
7. Since it began its operations in 1950, and with the facilitation and support of host Governments and donors, UNRWA has been serving Palestine refugees in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, as well as in Jordan, Lebanon and the Syrian Arab Republic. Its 32,840 personnel provide vital humanitarian assistance and human development services to Palestine refugees registered with the Agency. The Agency continues to play an indispensable role in contributing to regional stability, to efforts to foster peace and security and to the mitigation of violent extremism in the region. UNRWA works to safeguard and advance the rights of Palestine refugees under international law.
8. Palestine refugees have remained among the most vulnerable in their communities, suffering from poverty, rising unemployment rates (especially among young people and women), discrimination in various forms, marginalization and limitations on their ability to fully enjoy their human rights.
9. Despite its recurrent funding shortfalls, UNRWA has continued to take measures to increase its efficiency, while also maintaining the quality of services to Palestine refugees. The reforms it has implemented underscore the Agency’s commitment to transparency and accountability, in line with the principles of the Grand Bargain on humanitarian financing announced at the World Humanitarian Summit, held in Istanbul, Türkiye, in May 2016.
10. The Agency remains firmly committed to humanitarian principles, including the principle of neutrality. The Independent Review Group on the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, commissioned by the Secretary-General on 5 February 2024 and led by the former Minister for Foreign Affairs of France, Catherine Colonna, concluded that the Agency had already established a significant number of mechanisms and procedures to ensure compliance with the humanitarian principle of neutrality and to respond to violations thereof. The report’s findings further characterized those mechanisms and procedures as more developed than those of similar United Nations or non-governmental entities. The Commissioner-General of UNRWA has fully committed the Agency to the implementation of the recommendations of the Independent Review Group through a high-level action plan, which will be updated regularly.

III. Field of operations of the Agency

11. In 2023, UNRWA maintained the delivery of humanitarian, human development and protection assistance for registered Palestine refugees through a collective commitment on the part of the Agency, its donors and countries hosting Palestine refugees. UNRWA provided almost 7 million primary health-care consultations, education for over 543,000 children (2022/23 academic year), social safety net assistance (including cash and food) for over 332,000 individuals, technical and vocational education and training for 7,811 young people and 27,199 microfinance loans, including for 13,755 Palestine refugees. In addition, 468 shelters were rehabilitated or constructed in accordance with Agency protection and safety standards, and UNRWA either constructed, upgraded or reconstructed three schools and six health centres. Protection assistance was extended across all fields covered by the Agency’s operations.
12. In the Gaza Strip, a new, existential chapter of hardship opened for Palestine refugees following the 7 October 2023 Hamas attacks on Israel and the ensuing Israeli military operation, which triggered an unprecedented humanitarian crisis that, by the end of May 2024, had resulted in the reported deaths of over 36,479 people,[1] including 192 UNRWA personnel; internally displaced over 1.7 million Gazans; destroyed or damaged infrastructure, including 186 of the Agency’s facilities; brought the health system to near collapse; and pushed the local population to the brink of famine. By December 2023, the Agency’s regular operations in Gaza were suspended, 154 of its installations had been turned into emergency shelters for 1.37 million internally displaced persons and its logistics capacity formed the backbone of the life-saving humanitarian response for 2.2 million people.
13. UNRWA is mandated to continue to provide emergency food assistance to approximately 1.1 million Palestinians in Gaza in 2024, more than half of the total population of Gaza. Following 7 October, insufficient quantities of humanitarian assistance and other essential goods, including fuel, have entered Gaza, with restrictions affecting the coordination and distribution of assistance, posing a general impediment to the Agency’s ability to deliver on its mandate in Gaza. The Working Group remains concerned about restrictions placed by Israel on humanitarian access and aid delivery in Gaza. It is also extremely concerned about humanitarian conditions in Gaza, screening procedures and the constrained and insecure operational environment, which have resulted in increased financial costs for the Agency’s operations. The Working Group stresses that urgent action is needed to address the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza and underscores the importance of the full implementation of Security Council resolutions 1850 (2008), 1860 (2009), 2712 (2023), 2720 (2023), 2728 (2024) and 2735 (2024).
14. Throughout 2023, the daily lives of 912,879 Palestine refugees registered with UNRWA in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, remained heavily affected by the Israeli occupation, and the security and socioeconomic situation further deteriorated in the wake of 7 October. During the reporting period, the highest number of Palestinian fatalities in the West Bank (507) was recorded in a single year since the United Nations began systematically documenting casualties in 2005, while an additional 13,004 Palestinians were injured in security-related incidents. UNRWA recorded 1,145 operations of the Israeli security forces in and around Palestine refugee camps in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Of these, 40 per cent occurred after 7 October. Settler violence against Palestinians also increased during the reporting period. Overall, UNRWA identified 1,227 incidents involving settlers across the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, in 2023 – the highest number in any given year since the United Nations started recording such incidents in 2005.[2] The economic impact has been grave, with an estimated $1.5 billion lost in nominal gross domestic product during the final quarter of 2023 alone.[3] Heightened restrictions on movement imposed by Israel on Palestinians after 7 October stifled economic activity, with severe disruption to tourism, trade routes, supply chain networks and mobility, which in particular affected 67,000 Palestinian workers.
15. The total amount of value-added tax due to the Agency from the Palestinian Authority Ministry of Finance with respect to services and goods procured for the West Bank and Gaza stood at $99.19 million as at 31 December 2023. At the same time, Israel owed UNRWA $1.65 million in outstanding reimbursement for value-added tax. The Agency regularly follows up with relevant authorities to recover outstanding amounts.
16. In the Syrian Arab Republic, the conflict continues to take a dramatic toll on Palestine refugees, with little prospect for improvement in their situation. The overall security situation in the country is volatile and the economic crisis has deepened, with rampant inflation doubling the overall cost of living. The cumulative effect of the economic deterioration has been particularly profound on Palestine refugees. In 2023, the Agency estimated that 40 per cent of the approximately 438,000 Palestine refugees remaining in the country remained displaced. Approximately 50,000 had fled from the Syrian Arab Republic to Jordan and Lebanon. Overall, 96 per cent of Palestine refugees in the Syrian Arab Republic are reliant on UNRWA for assistance. In February 2023, their conditions were aggravated further due to a series of powerful earthquakes and aftershocks in Türkiye that affected the northern Syrian Arab Republic.
17. Lebanon hosts multiple large refugee populations, which is an enormous strain on government resources, infrastructure and social cohesion. The country also hosts more than 480,000 registered Palestine refugees, not including Palestine refugees who have arrived from the Syrian Arab Republic. Palestine refugees remained a very vulnerable community and continued to be negatively affected by the aftermath of the ongoing economic and financial crises and by the instability caused by clashes among armed factions in some Palestinian camps. Given that context, the Agency’s services remain a lifeline for Palestine refugees in Lebanon.
18. In Jordan, close to 2.4 million Palestine refugees are registered with the Agency. In 2023, living standards remained relatively favourable, even though many Palestine refugees continue to face hardship and despite increased poverty, which reached an estimated rate of 35.4 per cent at the end of the year. Against this challenging economic backdrop, there has been a sharp decline in overall humanitarian funding to Jordan, which has severely affected the capacity of humanitarian agencies to assist the refugee population, including the 20,219 Palestine refugees from the Syrian Arab Republic. As a result, critical interventions have been either cut or curtailed.

IV. Structure of the Agency

19. The Agency receives funding through: (a) a programme budget fund that supports core operations, including recurrent staff and non-staff costs, education, health, camp improvement, relief and social services, protection and support systems and structures; (b) emergency appeals, including flash appeals for humanitarian interventions; and (c) specific, time-bound projects that strengthen service provision to Palestine refugees without increasing recurrent costs, with the aim of meeting the technical assistance and infrastructure requirements for the Agency’s overall operations.
20. UNRWA has a single integrated budget framework. The programme budget is funded predominantly by voluntary, unearmarked contributions from States Members of the United Nations and other donors. The non-core sources of funding are emergency appeals, which raise both earmarked and unearmarked funds through voluntary contributions. Project funds are for specific, time-bound activities that are not captured in the programme budget or the emergency appeals and are resourced entirely from voluntary, earmarked contributions.
21. UNRWA has been providing emergency assistance to the Palestine refugee population in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank since 2000 and in Jordan, Lebanon and the Syrian Arab Republic since 2012, through two distinct emergency appeals. The highly volatile context in which the Agency operates was underscored by the launch of four flash appeals during 2023, most notably the appeal related to the onset of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. The three other flash appeals covered emergency needs and early recovery actions pertaining to: (a) the earthquakes and aftershocks that affected north-western Syria and Lebanon; (b) Israeli security forces operations in Jenin in the West Bank; and (c) interfactional violence in Ein El Hilweh camp in Lebanon.

V. Financial situation of the Agency

22. The Agency started operations in 2023 in a precarious situation, with $75 million in debts and liabilities carried over from previous years after the chronic deterioration of its funding. Those financial challenges have reached unprecedented levels in 2024. A carry-over of around $35 million in liabilities posed an immediate challenge to the cash flow in the first quarter. This situation was further aggravated amid the escalating situation in Gaza and the funding suspensions announced by 16 UNRWA donors in early 2024 in response to allegations by Israel that 12 UNRWA personnel were involved on 7 October. Upon the request of the Secretary-General, the Office of Internal Oversight Services immediately launched an investigation into those allegations.[4] The funding suspensions decreased the Agency’s expected funding by $438 million (or 51.5 per cent), significantly affecting its capacity to maintain operations across all fields of operations.[5] At the same time, several Member State donors not only maintained their funding but increased their contributions, and other Member States became first-time or returning donors to UNRWA.
23. The programme budget for 2023 was set at $848 million (excluding liabilities). UNRWA also budgeted $344.9 million for emergency appeal for the occupied Palestinian territory and $436.7 million for the emergency appeal for Syria, Lebanon and Jordan. The former was superseded in October 2023 by a flash appeal for $481 million responding to needs emerging from the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. An additional $55 million was budgeted for the three flash appeals, covering emergency needs and early recovery actions pertaining to: (a) the earthquakes and aftershocks affecting the north-western Syrian Arab Republic and Lebanon ($16 million); (b) Israeli security forces operations in Jenin ($24 million); and (c) interfactional violence in Ein El Hilweh camp in Lebanon ($15 million). The Agency’s total budgetary requirements in 2023 amounted to $2.41 billion, including $848 million for the programme budget (excluding liabilities), all five emergency appeals and priority project requirements of $249.7 million.
24. In 2023, UNRWA resource mobilization efforts yielded a total pledged amount of $1.46 billion across all funding portals, including $770.6 million ($686 million from traditional donors and $84.6 million from other sources) for the programme budget (including the United Nations regular budget). Although this represents the highest amount ever raised by the Agency, the resources mobilized were $952 million short of meeting the Agency’s overall needs.
25. In 2023, as in 2022, ensuring sufficient cash flow to maintain all critical services for Palestine refugees presented an additional challenge for the Agency, due to uneven income inflow and the lack of any operational reserve to offset cash-flow instability. Payments to suppliers were deferred. Critical operations were sustained through Central Emergency Response Fund loans totalling $17 million and additional funding from donors, including the front-loading of planned contributions for 2024.
26. Underfunding in 2023 continued to have a major impact on the Agency’s operations and core services across the region, including education and health services for Palestine refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, the Syrian Arab Republic, Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Programme budget shortages resulted, in, inter alia: (a) the continued application of a ceiling of 50 students per class in UNRWA schools and double-shift schools; (b) the ongoing freeze on the ceiling of the social safety net programme, which has been in force since April 2013, and the erosion of the value of social transfers extended through the programme; (c) further delays in capital investments, such as in the Agency’s fleet of vehicles, information technology equipment and software; and (d) continued neglect with regard to essential maintenance works, which may result in greater future expenses and risks to staff and beneficiaries.
27. The General Assembly-mandated annual pledging conference for UNRWA was held on 2 June 2023 in New York under the auspices of the President of the General Assembly. Jordan and Sweden co-hosted a ministerial-level meeting during the high-level week of the General Assembly on 21 September 2023. UNRWA is grateful to Jordan and Sweden, whose Ministers for Foreign Affairs co-chaired the meeting. These forums were focused on the gravity of the Agency’s financial crisis. Participants expressed strong political support for the Agency and its mandate and for efforts to find options for sustainable funding, including increasing assessed contributions from the United Nations regular budget.
28. The programme budget for 2024 stands at $880.2 million. This figure includes $71.5 million in assessed contributions for operational costs related to executive and administrative management functions, which represents an increase of $30 million compared with the previous year. In order to deliver its critical humanitarian services in 2024, including emergency assistance to over 1.5 million Palestine refugees affected by the humanitarian crisis, an additional $415.4 million has been planned through the emergency appeal for Syria, Lebanon and Jordan. Following the extension of the original flash appeal, which had been launched on 9 November 2023,[6] the Agency launched an updated flash appeal for the occupied Palestinian territory for $1.21 billion to respond to the humanitarian crisis.[7]
29. As at 31 May 2024, UNRWA had received confirmed pledges amounting to $940 million (including $700 million already received), including for projects and for emergency and core operations. As a result, the programme budget of $880 million was 61 per cent funded, while the emergency appeal for Syria, Lebanon and Jordan stood at 17 per cent funded. Total expected income in 2024, according to internal calculations at the end of May, remains far below requirements, meaning that UNRWA will lack the funds to continue to deliver core services from July onwards.
30. It is essential that UNRWA receive the support necessary to address its existential financial crisis in 2024 with needs continuing to rise, in particular with regard to the humanitarian situation in Gaza and the implementation of the recommendations of the Independent Review Group through the Agency’s high-level action plan. It is equally vital that the longer-term challenges of recurrent cash-flow crises be addressed.
31. The Agency has been pursuing other avenues for securing innovative, new and sustainable sources of funding, while continuing its efforts to diversify resource mobilization. In line with the commitment undertaken at the Grand Bargain meeting in 2022, UNRWA increased its advocacy efforts with Member States and donors to mobilize multi-year and flexible funding to facilitate predictable and longer-term planning. As a result, some major donors provided additional flexibility with respect to the use of their contributions across humanitarian and development portals, which was key to enabling the Agency to prioritize the most urgent needs.
32. In 2023, UNRWA continued its efforts to enhance fundraising from the private sector on the basis of a new strategy to attract private donations, coupled with a new due diligence policy, with a particular focus on: (a) digital fundraising; (b) high-value donors and foundations; and (c) Islamic giving. The benefits of these actions began to yield results in 2023, more than tripling the total amount raised from the private sector compared with 2022 and representing 4 per cent of overall income compared with 1.3 per cent in 2022. Relations with the existing UNRWA national committees in the United States and Spain have also been strengthened, yielding $22.2 million and $2.6 million respectively. A total of $56.9 million was secured from private-sector sources throughout 2023. From October 2023 through the end of May 2024, UNRWA raised more than $125 million from the private sector, including from 141,000 individual donors, to the “keep UNRWA working” and Ramadan campaigns.
33. During the reporting period, UNRWA maintained its focus on expanding relationships with emerging donors in Asia, Europe, Africa and Latin America. In 2023, emerging donors’ share of contributions increased from 1.2 per cent in 2022 to 2.1 per cent, totalling $30.6 million. Several first-time donors contributed to the flash appeal for the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. In contrast with previous years, funding from regional partners decreased by 2.6 per cent, including funding for the flash appeals. During the reporting period, UNRWA also focused on expanding its relationships with donors from the Gulf, including through visits by the UNRWA Commissioner-General in February 2024[8] and through other missions undertaken at technical level.
34. Members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) established a waqf development fund for UNRWA in 2019, administered by the Islamic Development Bank. The aim of the fund is to generate a sustainable source of contributions to the UNRWA programme budget in the form of profits generated by an investment portfolio as a long-term investment strategy that could yield future income for UNRWA. The waqf has not yet received sufficient capital for its implementation. In February 2024, the Commissioner-General of UNRWA and the Secretary-General of OIC sent letters to a group of States members of OIC to encourage contributions to the waqf. Despite continued efforts, no additional capital has been received. The Agency, in collaboration with OIC, will reassess strategies and objectives with regard to the waqf.
35. In his report of 30 March 2017 (A/71/849), the Secretary-General urged the General Assembly and its relevant Committees to consider increasing the support provided to UNRWA from the United Nations regular budget as a means to ensure sufficient, predictable and sustained funding for the Agency for the duration of its mandate. In its resolution 78/252, the Assembly, responding to a proposal to increase the regular budget allocation to the Agency on the basis of Assembly resolution 77/122, entitled “Operations of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine refugees in the Near East”, decided to reallocate the remaining 50 per cent of resources related to executive and administrative management functions envisioned to be proposed by the Secretary-General in the 2025 budget to the 2024 budget.

VI. Conclusions and recommendations

36. The Working Group wishes to thank all Member States, donors and host countries that have been supporting the work of UNRWA since its establishment and that have contributed to the well-being, development and protection of Palestine refugees.
37. The Working Group welcomes the statement of shared commitments on UNRWA, initiated by Jordan, Kuwait and Slovenia on 22 May 2024,[9] which highlighted the need to collectively uphold the mandate conferred on the Agency by the General Assembly in all fields of operation; acknowledged the indispensable role of UNRWA in providing essential services to the Palestine refugees and in safeguarding regional stability; and stressed the extremely critical financial situation of the Agency and the importance of providing sufficient, predictable and sustained funding support.
38. The Working Group expresses its serious concern about the large funding gap affecting the Agency’s programme budget in 2024 and, without prejudice to General Assembly resolution 302 (IV), subsequent resolutions renewing the mandate of UNRWA and any future budget assessments by the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions and the Fifth Committee, reiterates that Member States and the wider international community are responsible for ensuring that the Agency’s services are maintained at a sufficient level; that the Agency can fulfil its mandate, in quantitative and qualitative terms; and that funding keeps pace with the requirements of the Agency to meet the growing needs of the Palestine refugee population, especially as the Agency and the Palestinian refugees alike are facing unprecedented and existential challenges.
39. The Working Group is very concerned about the potential destabilizing impact that the continued underfunding of UNRWA may have on the region, including in host countries, in particular in the light of the ongoing war in Gaza and its disastrous humanitarian consequences. The Working Group welcomes the Agency’s continued and far-reaching reforms, but acknowledges that the current reforms in themselves will be insufficient to solve the problems related to its financial deficit and encourages the Agency to make further efforts to continue its reform initiatives.
40. The Working Group emphasizes the critical need for the Agency’s humanitarian work to be shielded from politicization, including inappropriate, undue restrictions on and obstructions and administrative hindrances to UNRWA and its personnel in their work to implement the Agency’s mandate. It also expresses concern over the potential designation of UNRWA as a terrorist entity by the Knesset, as well as concern over recent bills in the Knesset and the order of the Israel Land Authority for UNRWA to evacuate its East Jerusalem premises, which could hinder aid delivery and essential services to Palestine refugees.
41. The Working Group commends the Commissioner-General and all Agency staff for their tireless and indispensable efforts to maintain the regular and emergency services of UNRWA under exceptionally difficult operational circumstances, which are undermining and curtailing the Agency’s ability to properly implement its mandate.
42. The Working Group strongly urges all Governments to bear in mind the foregoing considerations when deciding on the level and quality (e.g. multi-year, flexible) of their contributions to UNRWA for 2024. Consistent with the report of the Secretary-General of 30 March 2017 (A/71/849) and with the findings of the Independent Review Group, and taking into consideration the foregoing, the Working Group:

(a)      Urges all Governments to increase and sustain their voluntary contributions to UNRWA, where possible, and to contribute to the Agency’s three funding portals, as described in the present report, while taking into account the primary importance of fully funding its programme budget first and foremost. It is also highly encouraged that Government contributions be swiftly and flexibly disbursed and keep pace with the requirements of the Agency, while taking into account the effects of inflation and other factors driving the costs of providing services. Contributions should also reflect appropriate international burden-sharing;

(b)      Urges all Governments to provide unearmarked multi-year funding; to make, when possible, sustained and predictable contributions to UNRWA in line with the recommendations made at the World Humanitarian Summit of 2016 and the New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants of 2016; and to disburse their contributions early in the year, when feasible;

(c)      Commends UNRWA for the measures it has taken to increase its efficiency while maintaining the quality of services to Palestine refugees and for the measures it has taken to increase its transparency through its reporting to the International Aid Transparency Initiative, and encourages the continued implementation of those measures and related efforts by UNRWA;

(d)      Commends UNRWA for the swift and transparent measures it has taken consistent with the humanitarian principle of neutrality, including with respect to its response in developing a high-level action plan for the implementation of the recommendations of the Independent Review Group, and encourages UNRWA to maintain its efforts towards full implementation and accountability, while acknowledging that several of the recommendations require additional financial and human resources to ensure their implementation and sustained impact;

(e)      Encourages UNRWA to continue resource mobilization efforts and explore ways to diversify its access to funding;

(f)       Takes note of the recommendations contained in the report of the Secretary-General of 30 March 2017 (A/71/849) and all resolutions related to the financing of UNRWA, with a view to addressing recurring budget deficits and sufficiently and predictably supporting the Agency’s vital work in all areas of operation;

(g)      Underlines, given the extremely critical financial situation of the Agency, the importance of securing durable solutions for the future of the Agency, including for its financial stability.

          [1] UNRWA, “Situation report #111 on the situation in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem”, 5 June 2024.

          [2] Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, “West Bank snapshot”, 14 December 2023.

          [3] World Bank, “Impacts of the conflict in the Middle East on the Palestinian economy”, December 2023.

          [4] Israeli authorities subsequently raised allegations against seven other UNRWA personnel, which were included in the investigations of the Office of Internal Oversight Services.

          [5] By the end of May 2024, 14 donors had reversed their suspensions, with the exception of the United States of America and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. On 19 July 2024, the latter resumed its funding to UNRWA.

          [6] UNRWA, “UNRWA updated oPt flash appeal, November 2023” (Amman, 2023).

          [7] UNRWA, “UNRWA updated oPt flash appeal, April–December 2024” (Amman, 2024).

          [8] The Commissioner-General visited the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.

          [9] As at the date of the present report, 123 countries and groups have signed on to the shared commitments.