UNRWA MAY DELAY START OF SCHOOL YEAR FOR HALF A MILLION PALESTINIAN STUDENTS

Amman, 12 Shawwal 1436/28 July 2015 (MINA) – The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) said Sunday evening that it may be forced to delay the start of the academic year for half a million students in some 700 schools across the Middle East, because of an estimated deficit of $101 million.

In a statement announcing an emergency meeting of its Advisory Commission in the Jordanian capital Amman, UNRWA said that it may be forced to take drastic measures unless the deficit of $101 million can be fully funded before the start of the school year scheduled on September 1, according to IINA reports received by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA).

The agency appealed to all donors, partners and UN Member States to actively step forward with critical funding to allow the school year to begin without interruption and to preserve the historic investment in human development of

Palestine refugees, recognized as one the most successful processes of its kind in the Middle-East.
Ensuring the continued provision of education is a matter of dignity, rights and regional stability. (T/P007/R04)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)