Spain to fund operating costs of two UNRWA health centres — embassy

AMMAN — The Spanish embassy in Amman on Monday announced it would fund the operating costs of two UNRWA health centres in Jordan.

Spain will fund the health centres through a 500,000 euro donation administered by the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation, according to a statement sent from the embassy. The donation is expected to fund the centres’ operations over the next 15 months.

The funding was announced during Spanish Ambassador to Jordan Aránzazu Dávalos’ visit to the UNRWA Talbiyeh and Madaba health centres, where the ambassador toured the various health services provided by the centres. The agency’s healthcare services include diagnosis and treatment of illnesses, reduction in the rate of complications from non-communicable diseases, control of communicable and non-communicable diseases and access to medical professionals and prescription medication, according to the statement.

The embassy added that the donation will also support training for maintenance staff that aims to improve sanitation at the UNRWA facilities.

“Spain has always cared much about Palestinian refugees and has been traditionally one of its strong supporters,” Dávalos said during the visit. “We stand clear and firm in our political advocacy and we shall continue to stress the importance of preserving UNRWA’s mandate until a just and lasting solution for the Palestinian question is achieved.”

The director of UNRWA operations in Jordan, Roger Davies, expressed his gratitude for the support and added that the “contribution will benefit up to 38,000 Palestinian refugees”.

UNRWA health centres had recorded 1.6 million patient visits as of January 2018, according to the statement, which added that Spain contributed over 19.5 million euros to UNRWA in 2018.