Quality Care in Uncertain Times: EU enables frontline UNRWA health response to Coronavirus

“This is a particularly vulnerable time for Palestine refugees” says the Agency’s Spokesperson, Sami Mshasha, who reiterated that Bethlehem was among one of the first areas to have COVID-19 reported. As Bethlehem became a town in quarantine and restrictions elsewhere quickly followed, “UNRWA would not have been able to respond as quickly and support frontline staff without the vital EUR 82 Million we received from the European Union earlier this year.”

Mshasha went on to say, “Through our partnership with the EU, we have managed to adapt to the evolving needs of Palestine refugees across the oPt, Lebanon, Syria and Jordan.”

Since the early onset of the Coronavirus, UNRWA mobilized available resources including frontline staff to ensure adequate delivery of vital medicines and health equipment across the West Bank and East Jerusalem. “Until now, UNRWA has yet to report a single case of COVID-19 at our health centers in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.  I think this speaks highly of how the Agency is handling the pandemic,” says Dr. Issam Owaisat, head of the UNRWA Central Pharmacy in its West Bank field office in East Jerusalem’s Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood.

Hand in hand, with steadfast allies like the EU, UNRWA has adapted to continue to meet the health needs of Palestine refugees, including ensuring continued distribution of pharmaceuticals and medical supplies across the Agency’s five fields of operations. The EU has not left Palestine refugees behind.

From international borders to the hands of reliant patients, the Agency safely transports and distributes critical health equipment, available to over 3.5 million Palestine refugees accessing UNRWA health services with EU support. These methods have been revised and adjusted accordingly in the face of COVID-19.