LONDON: The cost of reconstructing the Gaza Strip could reach $50 billion, according to a UN Development Program official.
Abdullah Al-Dardari, director of the UNDP Regional Office for Arab States, highlighted the critical situation following any potential ceasefire.
He emphasized that the most dangerous phase would be the day after a ceasefire, as displaced individuals and those who had lost their homes anxiously awaited the start of the reconstruction process.
Earlier in May, a UN report highlighted that Israel’s war on Gaza had depleted much of the physical and human capital in the enclave.
The report by the UN Development Program, titled “War in Gaza: Expected Socioeconomic Impacts on the State of Palestine,” outlined the widespread damage caused by the conflict, including the destruction of about 80,000 homes, resulting in significant, and possibly longlasting, displacement and homelessness among the population; the depletion and pollution of natural resources; and the destruction of infrastructure such as water and sanitation systems, educational institutions and health care facilities.
Al-Dardari said that the early recovery program’s costs were estimated at about $2 billion.
Meanwhile, the UN has estimated that up to 250,000 people are affected by the Israeli military’s order on Tuesday for civilians to evacuate Al-Qarara, Bani Suhaila and other areas near Khan Yunis, Gaza’s second-largest city.
Al-Dardari stressed the need to have a mechanism in place to ensure a sufficient number of ready-made temporary homes for Gaza immediately after a ceasefire, along with essential health, education, drinking water, sanitation and electricity services.
