The UNRWA-supported social enterprise GGateway (Gaza Gateway) celebrated its launch event on 3 April in Gaza city. The event was attended by senior UNRWA staff including the Director of UNRWA Operations in Gaza, Mr. Bo Schack, as well as representatives from other UN agencies, non-government organizations, Gaza-based businesses as well as Information Technology (IT) graduates. In addition, a delegation from the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) – one of the main donors to the GGateway – arrived in Gaza to mark the important occasion. Following speeches by UNRWA, GGateway and KOICA representatives, a dinner was enjoyed by attendees, to encourage networking amongst the audience. The GGateway is an UNRWA initiative that serves to encourage technology innovation, invest in young, talented Gazans, inject employment and skills into the economy and develop private sector partnerships, for example by leveraging the short- and medium-term IT needs of UNRWA into a permanent part of the Gaza employment structure. The Information and Communications Technology (ICT) industry is the focus of much hope in Gaza because it represents a rare opportunity for high-value exports despite the blockade. GGateway has by now successfully handled five UNRWA projects and is employing 50 project associates. On the same day, the KOICA delegation, led by the country director of KOICA’s Palestine office, Mr. Youngwood Kim, undertook a field visit with UNRWA, focusing on the Agency’s shelter self-help repair programme. The visit included the visit to two families in Shujjaiya in eastern Gaza city whose homes were damaged or destroyed during the 2014 conflict and who were able to reconstruct and repair them with support from UNRWA.
As part of its ongoing education reform which promotes an inclusive and child-centred approach to learning, UNRWA has launched a healthy lifestyle campaign in its schools in Gaza. The campaign aims at raising awareness amongst education staff, students, refugee communities, host government, UNRWA partners and donors on how to promote a healthy school environment. As part of this campaign, on 3 April the Al Madena Al Monawra Preparatory Girls School in Rafah, southern Gaza, organized a healthy lifestyle festival. The celebration included exhibitions and information desks on healthy food and lifestyle, shows and sketches, a provisional restaurant serving juice and healthy dishes (with the school students playing “waitresses”), or drawing activities. The UNRWA school health strategy is part of the Agency’s Inclusive Education Approach and promotes four core areas for healthy development of students: comprehensive health services, a child-friendly and safe environment, health education, and nutrition. In Gaza, the main barriers to student health can be categorized in three dimensions: environmental, such as poverty, a high population density and poor living conditions, which can result in health hazards; behavioural risks related to attitudes and knowledge of students; and existing individual needs of students, such as chronic or temporary diseases, disabilities or impairments. Through its comprehensive services, UNRWA addresses and tries to mitigate the impact of each of these potential barriers to child health. .
UNRWA organizes regular meetings between its Director of Operations in Gaza and key editors from the local media every six to eight weeks as part of its Community Engagement and communications with communities (CWC) approach. The Agency understands the importance of the local media in communicating with beneficiaries in Gaza. The aim of these meetings is to update local media representatives on UNRWA programmes and projects and to answer their questions on a variety of topics. On 3 April, Mr. Bo Schack again welcomed media to the UNRWA Field Office. A total of 39 media outlets attended the press event, among them Al Jazeera, Mayadeen, Al Alam, Press TV, BBC, Palestine TV or Reuters. The press meeting was aired live on Al Quds TV. The UNRWA Director focused his remarks on UNRWA innovation and improvements through Information Technology (IT), the Agency’s support for talented youth, its work towards the creation of jobs, empowerment of women and its regular operations in the areas of construction and reconstruction, education, and health. The questions from media representatives mainly revolved around reconstruction, the import of construction materials, the Gaza Reconstruction Mechanism as well as the Agency’s recruitments.
To raise awareness amongst students, parents and the larger community about the danger and impact of Explosive Remnants of War (ERW), the United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS), with support from UNRWA, organized an event to mark the annual International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action observance on 4 April. Activities were held in the UNRWA Gaza co-ed Elementary A school under this year’s slogan “Mine action is humanitarian action.” The event included speeches, theatre sketches and workshops, to increase awareness to the dangers that ERW pose. Mr. Dave Hutton, Head of UNRWA Gaza Community Mental Health Programme, attended the event and represented UNRWA through his remarks. Mr. Hutton stated that in in Gaza, since 2014, 115 civilians have been victims of ERW-related accidents, which is 115 too many. ERW comprises unexploded ordnance – bombs, mortars, grenades, missiles, cluster munitions or other devices – that fail to detonate on impact but remain volatile and can kill if touched or moved – or abandoned explosive ordnance. In Gaza, UNRWA, with guidance from UNMAS, implements outreach activities on safety and risk education regarding ERWs. UNRWA provides training to front-line staff, including teachers, as well as social workers and engineers, on how to recognize, demarcate and signal the presence of ERW safely. This will ensure that staff are equipped to pass on ERW risk awareness learnings to the refugee community, in particular to students attending UNRWA schools. After the summer hostilities of 2014, UNMAS estimates that more than 7,000 explosive ERWs were estimated to remain in the Gaza Strip. Although as of today approximately 42 per cent of ERW (2,953 ERW items) have been identified and destroyed, the remaining 58 per cent continue to pose a threat to the population living in Gaza. In total, to date in the occupied Palestinian territory, UNMAS has surveyed and cleared 246 ERW-infected sites, including schools; it has provided training to 10,000 UN staff, humanitarian workers, internally displaced persons, engineers, construction workers and other at-risk populations. In addition, it continues to monitor ERW demolition processes and has ensured the safe destruction of over 2,300 items of ERWs including aircraft bombs. UNRWA TV continues to broadcast ERW Awareness videos, which can also be viewed here.
In March, UNRWA completed four infrastructure projects including one school in Beach Camp, phase three of the Rafah Rehousing Project and two Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) projects (construction of 47 water wells that will supply water to 95 UNRWA schools and upgrading of a water well in Rafah, southern Gaza). As of March 2016, the total value of UNRWA projects at various stages from design to completion approved by the Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) unit is US$ 228.6 million. UNRWA received COGAT feedback for seven projects during March. Out of the seven projects, two received full approval i.e. approval of all materials requested (both are very small projects with a combined value of US$ 10,800), and two projects were partially approved (approval for only some dual use list items). The three remaining projects received approval for ABC materials (aggregate, steel reinforcement bars and cement) only. In addition, UNRWA also received approval for the remaining dual use list items for a project that had previously been approved for ABC materials only. In March, the Israeli authorities stopped the coordination of trucks carrying approved and coordinated materials into Gaza for UNRWA contractors for a few days, but agreed to resume coordination. These trucks restarted entering Gaza on 30 March. For more information on UNRWA construction activities in Gaza, please consult the attached March 2016 Construction Update.
In the context of one of the highest unemployment rates worldwide, and to support innovation and entrepreneurs within the Gaza population, UNRWA, through its microfinance department (MD), aims at improving the quality of life of small business owners, micro-entrepreneurs and poor households through the provision of credit and other financial services that sustain jobs, decrease unemployment, reduce poverty, and provide income-generating and asset-building opportunities to Palestine refugees. During the month of February, the MD disbursed 390 loans valued at US$ 577,050; it also closed 306 loans. The average loan amount in February was US$ 1,480. Approximately 43 per cent of the MD clients in Gaza are female, and 12 per cent are 24 years old or less; 84 per cent are Palestine refugees. In addition to providing loans, the MD also maintains a Small and Medium Enterprise Business Training Programme through which it offers courses in management, English language or business communications for business owners, business graduates, start-ups or unemployed persons. In February, the MD conducted seven workshops reaching 151 participants, 47 per cent of them being women, and 56 per cent being between 15 and 24 years old. The main obstacle to the development of successful businesses in Gaza is the Israeli-imposed blockade, entering its 10th year in June 2016. The impact of this includes fuel and electricity shortages and limited purchasing power of the population due to lack of (sufficient) income as a result of a crippled economy. This is exacerbated by falling wages and rising prices, poverty, and aid dependency (see also Gaza situation report 137).