PLO rejects plans to lay off UNRWA staff, calls for urgent funding

The Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) Executive Committee on Sunday firmly rejected any plans to lay off large numbers of staff at the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), calling on donor countries to provide adequate and sustainable funding.

The committee discussed the issue at a meeting in Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, following remarks on Friday by Riyad Zeighan, head of the General Conference of Local Staff Unions at UNRWA, who said the agency planned to lay off large numbers of employees across its areas of operation due to a lack of funding.

The committee called for urgent international action to provide about $70 million to cover immediate funding needs and ensure UNRWA staff receive their salaries in November and December.

In a statement, the committee said the meeting had addressed the “existential challenges facing refugees” and UNRWA’s plans to lay off staff and cut services.

It strongly rejected any plans to lay off large numbers of UNRWA employees across its areas of operation and warned that the financial crisis could undermine the agency’s ability to continue providing services and fulfil its UN mandate.

The committee said UNRWA staff formed the backbone of the agency and that laying them off would not resolve the financial crisis. Instead, it would threaten the continuation of education, healthcare, relief and social protection services provided to millions of Palestinian refugees.

It warned that cuts to these services would increase the humanitarian and social burden on refugee camps, threatening regional stability.