EU approves €252.5 million in aid to Palestine

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Wednesday 02 Mar 2016 - 11:56 Makkah mean time-22-5-1437 EU High Representative Federica Mogherini (Image from Internet) Brussels (IINA) – The European Commission has approved €252.5 million assistance package to the Palestinian Authority (PA) and Palestinian refugees, the first part of the EU's 2016 annual support package in favor of Palestine, WAFA reported. "Through this package, the EU supports the daily lives of Palestinians in the fields of education and health, protecting the poorest families and also providing the Palestinian refugees across the country with access to essential services,” EU High Representative Federica Mogherini said in a statement Tuesday. “These steps are not enough; Palestinian institutions must continue to grow stronger, become more transparent, more accountable and more democratic,” she added. Commissioner for European Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Johannes Hahn said the current European assistance aims to ensure the functioning of the PA and to support vulnerable Palestinian people, including Palestinian refugees. Under today's package, €170.5 million will be channeled directly to the PA, through the PEGASE mechanism to support the Palestinian Authority in delivering improved health and education services, the statement added. The remaining €82 million will be a contribution to the Program Budget of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency in the Near East (UNRWA), which provides essential services for Palestinian refugees across the region. This support aims at offering improved access to essential public services and increased livelihood opportunities to the most vulnerable Palestinian refugees. The EU said a second package of measures in favor of the Palestinians will be announced later in the year. PEGASE, launched by the European Union in 2008, is now the main instrument used by the EU to channel financial assistance directly from the EU budget and member states to support recurrent costs under the Palestinian Authority's own budget. AB/IINA