Qatar Fund for Development (QFFD) contributes to UNRWA in support of its education services to Palestine refugees in Syria

The Qatar Fund for Development (QFFD) has generously contributed US$13.4 million towards the education programme of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in Syria. The generous contribution is part of an overall US$ 20.7 million agreement with QFFD, signed in December 2019, to support the Agency’s human development services of education, health, and technical and vocational education. The support will reach up to 438,000 registered Palestine refugees in Syria.

Ten years of conflict in Syria continue to have dramatic consequences for the people living in the country, and Palestine refugees in particular. It has also had disastrous consequences on educational services in Syria with many school facilities, including those of UNRWA, destroyed and children experiencing displacement and educational disruption. In 2013, the number of Palestine refugee students enrolled in UNRWA schools dropped dramatically – from 67,242 before the war, to 21,962 students, with 70 percent of UNRWA schools in Syria deemed to be inoperative.

“The generous support of QFFD is key to our ability to continue providing safe and quality education to refugee students,” said the UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini.

Despite the protracted conflict, today UNRWA provides education to 50,249 Palestine refugee children in Syria through its 102 schools and the Education in Emergencies (EIE) interventions, including the implementation of recreational activities to support students’ wellbeing.