Monday, July 5, 2010

IRIN Middle East | OPT: Thousands missing out on education in Gaza | Middle East | OPT | Children Education | News Item

IRIN Middle East | OPT: Thousands missing out on education in Gaza | Middle East | OPT | Children Education | News Item
OPT: Thousands missing out on education in Gaza


Photo: Suhair Karam/IRIN
Nuha Abed Rabbo, 9, on her way to an UNRWA elementary school in eastern Gaza
GAZA CITY, 5 July 2010 (IRIN) - Thousands of Palestinian refugee children in the Gaza Strip are unable to receive adequate education, according to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA).

About 39,000 child refugees in Gaza will not attend UNRWA schools this year, since the agency is unable to build or re-build schools due to the Israeli blockade, damage sustained during the 23-day Israeli offensive (27 December 2008 - 18 January 2009) and population growth, UNRWA spokesperson Chris Gunness said in Jerusalem.

“My sons have trouble learning due to the large number of children, usually over 40 per class,” said Noa Ashi. Her sons Tareq, aged 9, and Mohammed, 7, attend New Gaza Elementary School (A) run by UNRWA in Gaza City. “The classrooms are small and three children share each desk,” she said, adding that Tareq and Mohammed attend school only four hours a day.

Israel imposed an economic embargo on the Gaza Strip after a Hamas takeover in June 2007 and in retaliation for the firing of rockets from Gaza into Israel. Israel considers Hamas a terrorist organization and says its import restrictions on items such as cement, steel and most building materials are to prevent Hamas developing weapons or fortifications.

Read more
Obstacles on road to Gaza rebuilding
Thousands of Gazans trek to Cairo for medical treatment
More items allowed into Gaza
Palestinian refugee numbers/whereabouts
Flotilla aid to enter Gaza under UN supervision
Slice of life in Gaza
Mud Brick Houses in Gaza
Israel says there is no humanitarian crisis in Gaza and most of the basic needs of the local population are met as at least 140 truck-loads of aid are allowed into the Stripevery day. The UN has said this is far from sufficient.

The Israeli blockade affects every aspect of human existence and remains the biggest challenge to UNRWA operations in Gaza, the head of UNRWA, John Ging, told IRIN. The blockade has destroyed the economy, making 80 percent of the population dependent on UN handouts, he said.

Infrastructure is also in a state of collapse: 80 million cubic litres of untreated sewage is pumped into the Mediterranean Sea each day, and 90 percent of the water is undrinkable by World Health Organization (WHO) standards, according to Ging.

To make matters worse, UNRWA is 25 percent underfunded, lacking US$100 million out of its $500 million budget, he added. The agency is only