Joint statement from France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands,
Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom on the launch of
the United Nations Horizon Fund for the Occupied Palestinian
Territories.
France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden,
Switzerland, the United Kingdom welcome the creation of the
United Nations Horizon Fund.
Together, we intend to make a contribution of $57.8 million to
the fund as part of a broader support for the United Nations'
critical role in the occupied Palestinian territory and the
implementation of the UN Security Council Resolution 2803 and the
Peace Plan for Gaza. It is also part of the new Team Europe+
Initiative for Early Recovery in Gaza.
The launch of the Fund constitutes a crucial step to address the
catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip with the
objective of scaling up the early recovery measures to respond to
the urgent needs of the civilian population.
The Fund will support UN agencies in their joint and coordinated
effort to support early recovery of the occupied Palestinian
territory, and in particular the Gaza Strip. Through coordinated
UN delivery, it will enable investments in critical sectors
including water and sanitation, health, housing, debris clearance
and explosive ordnance risk reduction, while helping to revive
livelihoods and local economic activity. It will lay the
groundwork for a comprehensive and sustainable reconstruction
process at scale when conditions allow for it.
The Fund provides a system-wide platform for joint coordination
and oversight among UN Agencies and donors and sets guiding
principles for the UN operations in Gaza: respect of
international law and humanitarian principles, territorial
integrity, respect of the fundamental rights of Palestinians and
Palestinian ownership.
At a time when severe restrictions on humanitarian aid delivery
continue to persist, we reiterate the urgency of rapid, unimpeded
and safe humanitarian and early recovery access to the Gaza
Strip.
We call on our partners to join this initiative.
