Jerusalem, Washington, Tel Aviv, September 29, 2008 - American Near East Refugee Aid (ANERA) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) signed a "Cooperative Agreement", making ANERA responsible for implementing the Emergency Water and Sanitation and Other Infrastructure Program in the West Bank and Gaza. The $50 million program will span five years.
Through the program, which begins on October 1, 2008, ANERA will provide emergency relief primarily in the water and sanitation sectors and address other infrastructure needs in Palestinian communities. ANERA will rehabilitate, expand and upgrade water and sewage systems and deliver potable water to communities in need. This includes installation of new pipes to carry potable water or sewage, as well as repair of water and sewer line breaks and small pumping systems.
"This program gives us the resources to respond quickly to emergency and humanitarian needs, create more jobs and put more families at ease about water and sanitation." says ANERA's President Bill Corcoran. "It is also a heartening endorsement by the U.S. Government of both the professionalism and skills of ANERA's staff in the Palestinian Territories and our diligent stewardship of money."
Over the course of the next five years, ANERA will ensure that:
- More than 70 Palestinian communities have increased access to new and/or improved potable water supplies.
- More than 30 Palestinian communities have access to improved sanitation systems.
- More than 30 facilities (education, health, and public facilities) are constructed and/or rehabilitated.
The program will target the construction of infrastructure that promotes democracy, functioning health systems, improved human capacity, economic recovery and growth, and other necessary infrastructure to include the purchase, supply and installation of required commodities.
"With this new program," says USAID Mission Director Howard J. Sumka, "USAID will be continuing its past work in improving water and sanitation services for the Palestinian people, assisting more than 100 Palestinian communities over the next five years and creating thousands of short-term jobs. It is only one of a large number of USAID programs that will build and rehabilitate essential infrastructure for Palestinians."
The first phase of this program, granted to ANERA by USAID in August 2006:
- Served over 1.6 million Palestinians across the West Bank and Gaza.
- Created over 45,000 days of employment in rural and remote communities where jobs are scarce.
- Connected more than 900,000 people to a clean and regular public water source, saving families money normally spent on finding private sources of water.
- Brought more than 700,000 people better sanitation services.
- Made more than 10,000 cubic meters of additional storage capacity for fresh water by installing rainwater cisterns.
"ANERA will expand on all of the accomplishments of phase one," says Corcoran. "We look forward to bringing good jobs and fresh water to more Palestinian communities as well as to safeguarding the environment of the West Bank and Gaza."
