Organised by the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, the Arab Republic of Egypt and the United Nations, the UfM Secretary General was among the heads of states and governments and representatives of international organisations, financial institutions and nongovernmental organisations at the event to identify Gaza’s humanitarian assistance needs, how to overcome obstacles to aid delivery, and early recovery priorities.

Following remarks by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates of Jordan Ayman Safadi, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Egypt Sameh Shoukry and United Nations Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths, the UfM Secretary General discussed Palestine’s early recovery priorities along with the World Bank, UNDP, WHO and other key regional stakeholders during a dedicated session. He highlighted the UfM’s willingness to assist and capitalise on its experience and demonstrated capacity to mobilise actors and build effective coalitions across the region.

The UfM, which convened a meeting of its Member States’ Foreign Ministers last November to discuss the grave situation in Gaza, is already working with a network of technical and financial partners to launch an education initiative that would allow Palestinian higher education students to finish their studies online. Currently under development, the initiative has already attracted the interest of more than 47,000 students. The UfM is also exploring other initiatives and projects to be deployed and implemented in Gaza in fields such as employment, the water, food and energy (WEFE) nexus, urban development and other strategic areas for recovery, rehabilitation and reconstruction.

After the working group sessions, King Abdullah II of Jordan, President Abdel Fatah el-Sisi of Egypt and United Nations Secretary General António Guterres addressed attendees as part of the Plenary Session. This was then followed by speeches by heads of states and governments, ministers, and heads of international organisations, including UfM Secretary General Nasser Kamel.

He underlined that: “The Union for the Mediterranean was created as a revival of the Barcelona Process, which was launched almost thirty years ago on the hope brought about by the Oslo Accords and the promise of shared peace. This can only be attained through a well-rooted peace built exclusively on the two-state solution. The UfM, through dialogue and cooperation, can and should contribute to creating an environment that is conducive to solving the conflict. We are ready to provide the UfM as a platform to enable more efficient and agile action in Gaza not only for the Day After, but as early as recovery can start.”