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UN / UNRWA KRAHENBUHL
STORY: UN / UNRWA KRAHENBUHL
TRT: 3:00
SOURCE: UNIFEED
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 21 JUNE 2019, NEW YORK CITY
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
1. Wide shot, UNHQ exterior
21 JUNE 2019, NEW YORK CITY
2. Wide shot, Krähenbühl arriving to press conference
3. Med shot, Krähenbühl at dais
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Pierre Krähenbühl, Commissioner General, United Nations Relief and Work Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA):
“This 1.2 billion represents the exact amount that we were able to mobilize last year. In other words, if every single donor would preserve and maintain their level of contribution reached in 2018, we would be able to cover the financial needs of UNRWA.”
5. Wide shot, journalists
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Pierre Krähenbühl, Commissioner General, United Nations Relief and Work Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA):
“Schools, of course, are currently closed for the summer break, but the big question will be will they be able to open on time come the end of August, the beginning of September. And one point that is extremely important for the stability of the region is the fact that we provide food assistance to one million people in the Gaza Strip; that is half the entire population of Gaza receives food assistance from UNRWA. And any disruption in that pipeline would be extremely problematic for the stability of the Gaza Strip, but also for the underlying conditions that people face that are already very difficult and dramatic in Gaza itself.”
7. Wide shot, Krähenbühl at dais
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Pierre Krähenbühl, Commissioner General, United Nations Relief and Work Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA):
“We have to ensure that food assistance continues to a million people, not in two years, but today and tomorrow. We have to ensure that Palestine refugee students, boys and girls, can go back to their schools, not in a few years’ time, but at the end of August and September. So, I think the timeline that we are talking about and the focus that UNRWA has is on delivering on its mandate immediately. It’s a continued effort.”
9. Med shot, journalist asking question
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Pierre Krähenbühl, Commissioner General, United Nations Relief and Work Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA):
“And you know, when you think of the fact that the majority of the Palestine refugee community today is below the age of 25-years-old, that means that these are all young people who are born after the Oslo agreement. So, they grew up hearing form the international community, from the United Nations, from Member States, from their own leadership, that if you believed in moderation, if you believed in political processes, if you believed in diplomacy, a solution would be found. And yet 25 years on, that solution has still not been found.”
11. Med shot, journalist asking question
12. SOUNDBITE (English) Pierre Krähenbühl, Commissioner General, United Nations Relief and Work Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA):
“And I can just say that there is nobody in UNRWA today who believes that another ten, 20, 30, or 40 years of UNRWA is the horizon that is needed for Palestine refugees. We need a political horizon. But I’m just seeing very little indication that we are progressing on that front in ways that would lead us to believe that Palestine refugees would feel included in a solution. And I think that’s the most important. Peace agreements work if people are included in the processes. And I think that’s what we are seeing.”
13. Wide shot, Krähenbühl speaking to journalists
The head of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) said if “every single donor would preserve and maintain their level of contribution reached in 2018, we would be able to cover the financial needs of UNRWA.”
Speaking to reporters in New York today (21 Jun) ahead of a pledging conference set for Tuesday, Krähenbühl said UNRWA would need 1.2 billion USD for its operations in the region which represents the “exact amount” it mobilized last year.
He said after the United States cut 300 million USD to its funding in 2018, UNRWA launched its ‘Dignity is Priceless campaign’ which help the Agency overcome its greatest financial crisis since its establishment and managed to cover its expenses through increased donor funding and tough cuts to its budget representing some 92 million USD.
Krähenbühl said UNRWA has been able to cover its expenses through the first five months of 2019 but began to see some deficit figures in June. He said he would appeal to donors to help bridge funding gaps during the summer months to avoid the disruption of services at UNRWA’s 708 schools, 144 healthcare centres, as well of emergency assistance especially in Gaza and Syria.
SOUNDBITE (English) Pierre Krähenbühl, Commissioner General, United Nations Relief and Work Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA):
“Schools, of course, are currently closed for the summer break, but the big question will be will they be able to open on time come the end of August, the beginning of September. And one point that is extremely important for the stability of the region is the fact that we provide food assistance to one million people in the Gaza Strip; that is half the entire population of Gaza receives food assistance from UNRWA. And any disruption in that pipeline would be extremely problematic for the stability of the Gaza Strip, but also for the underlying conditions that people face that are already very difficult and dramatic in Gaza itself.”
In response to a question, the UNRWA chief said there was no conflict between the upcoming Bahrain Workshop organized by Bahrain and the United States and his Agency’s work. He added, “We have to ensure that food assistance continues to a million people, not in two years, but today and tomorrow. We have to ensure that Palestine refugee students, boys and girls, can go back to their schools, not in a few years’ time, but at the end of August and September. So, I think the timeline that we are talking about and the focus that UNRWA has is on delivering on its mandate immediately. It’s a continued effort.”
Krähenbühl said the moving of the US embassy to Jerusalem and the cuts to UNRWA funding created anxiety among Palestine refugees. He added that UNRWA, through its work, sees the immense human cost of the unresolved Israeli-Palestinian conflict adding that this is why he was appealing for renewed efforts in this regard.
He noted that the majority of the Palestine refugee community today is “below the age of 25-years-old, that means that these are all young people who are born after the Oslo agreement. So, they grew up hearing form the international community, from the United Nations, from Member States, from their own leadership, that if you believed in moderation, if you believed in political processes, if you believed in diplomacy, a solution would be found. And yet 25 years on, that solution has still not been found.”
Krähenbühl said Palestine refugees were historical the least interested people in having a long-term presence of UNRWA adding that nobody in UNRWA today “believes that another ten, 20, 30, or 40 years of UNRWA is the horizon that is needed for Palestine refugees.” He highlighted the need for a “political horizon,” but adding that he was seeing “very little indication that we are progressing on that front in ways that would lead us to believe that Palestine refugees would feel included in a solution.” He stressed that peace agreements work “if people are included in the processes.”
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