European UN report: Gaza needs $71 billion for reconstruction
The United Nations and the European Union, in collaboration with the World Bank, have announced that the cost of rebuilding the Gaza Strip and recovering from the damage of the conflict is estimated at $71.4 billion over the next decade. The study, published today, revealed a massive $35.2 billion in physical infrastructure destruction, with a sharp contraction in the Gaza economy by 84 percent, causing Gaza's human development indicators to fall 77 years back.
Early Recovery Plan
The international plan emphasizes the need to secure urgent funding of $26.3 billion over the first 18 months, with the aim of restoring essential services in the health, education and housing sectors, where more than half of Gaza's hospitals remain out of service.
The EU and the UN stress that the recovery process must be Palestinian-led, adopt better reconstruction approaches and progress for the better, supporting the transition of governance to the Palestinian Authority in accordance with Resolution 2803 and the comprehensive plan, and promoting a lasting political settlement based on the two-state solution.
Planning and implementation processes are also supposed to be inclusive, transparent and accountable, with particular attention to the needs of women, children, older persons and persons with disabilities.
Sustainability and access requirements
The report links the success of this monumental mission to the need for "basic conditions" that cannot be exceeded, foremost among them a sustainable ceasefire, and ensuring the unimpeded flow of aid and construction materials through the crossings.
It also emphasizes the importance of a transparent financial system and accountable governance, with the need to immediately start clearing rubble and managing explosive remnants, which are an impediment to the return of displaced people, 60% of whom have lost their homes.
This assessment forms an analytical basis for planning for the early recovery and reconstruction phase, in line with UN Security Council resolutions, including Resolution 2803.
Given the magnitude of the needs, the report emphasizes the need for recovery efforts to run in parallel with humanitarian action, to ensure an effective and orderly transition from emergency relief to large-scale reconstruction across the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.
Ethical Testing and Accounting Pressures
Coinciding with these assessments, the EU is facing increasing human rights pressure as its foreign ministers meet in Luxembourg.
The report stressed that the Palestinians deserve a future based on dignity and the right to self-determination, calling on the international community to shoulder its responsibilities, and affirming the commitment of the European Union and the United Nations to support the Palestinian people and work for a just and lasting peace in the region.
Parallel to these assessments have been calls from UN experts to immediately suspend the EU-Israel Association Agreement, which has been providing Israel preferential access to the European market since 2000, despite what they described as documented human rights violations that have escalated to the level of "egregious crimes," including genocide.
"Europe is facing a clear moral test," the experts said, as its foreign ministers met in Luxembourg on April 21 to discuss the suspension of the agreement in whole or in part, amid growing popular demands within Europe for Israel to be held accountable.