Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, Ayman Safadi, stressed the need for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) to continue to fully implement its UN mandate to provide vital services to Palestinian refugees, as an expression of the international community’s commitment to their life and political rights.
During his meeting on Sunday, with UNRWA Commissioner-General, Philippe Lazzarini, Safadi stressed the importance of providing the necessary financial support to the organization to plug its recurrent budget deficit.
This assistance, Safadi said, would enable the agency to continue providing its vital services to refugees in the education, health, relief sectors and other services set, in accordance with its UN mandate.
Discussing efforts to mobilize support for UNRWA, Safadi stressed the Kingdom’s continued work with international and regional partners to provide the support the agency needs.
Safadi also stressed rejection of any change to the UNRWA’s mandate and powers, or plans aimed to reduce or alter its services provided to refugees, adding that provision of these services is the “exclusive” UNRWA responsibility, under its UN mandate and its powers and responsibilities “couldn’t be delegated to other parties”.
The FM stressed the importance of moving “effectively” to ensure providing assistance and support to UNRWA, which is suffering from a financial crisis that hinders its capability to offer vital services to about 5.7 million Palestinian refugees in its five areas of operation.
Lazzarini, for his part, lauded the Kingdom’s “intensive and continuous” efforts to mobilize political and financial support for UNRWA, stressing the importance of the international community’s continued fulfillment of its financial obligations towards the organization.
Reviewing UNRWA’s plans and challenges and financial deficit facing its budget, Lazzarini said the agency spares no effort in mobilizing additional financial funding to be able to carry out its tasks in accordance with its UN mandate.
In early April in New York, Safadi discussed with the UN Secretary-General the importance of supporting UNRWA. Jordan and Sweden also organized a series of ministerial meetings in recent years to drum up necessary political and financial support for the agency.
Source: Jordan News Agency