[13/December/2009]

CAIRO, Dec 13 (Saba) -- General Commissioner of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) Karen Abu Zaid praised Kuwait on Sunday for contributing with USD 34 million for aiding Gaza, Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) reported on Sunday.

Speaking at a ceremony held by the Arab League marking UNRWA's 60th anniversary, Abu Zaid also hailed Saudi Arabia for granting USD 25 million for re-construction of Nahr El-Bared refugee camp in northern Lebanon.

She called on the Arab states to increase their allocations for the agency so it could be able to continue to offer teaching, health and humanitarian services for the Palestinians in the West Bank, Gaza, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon.

Underscoring the need for mounting aid, she noted that the number of the Palestinian refugees has grown to 4.7 million from only 700,000 in 1949.

Abu Zaid regreted that the Arab contributions to UNRWA's budget of USD 582 million dropped from eight percent to only two percent, and urged the Arab League to try nudge the donors give aid to the agency to cope with USD 140 million worth of budget deficit.

Saba