Beirut - New York: Europe and the Arabs
The Executive Director of the United Nations Office for Project Services said that the Middle East is going through a critical moment under new leadership in Lebanon, a new regime in Syria, and a ceasefire in Gaza. He pointed out that removing the massive amounts of rubble and debris in Gaza is the most urgent task now, after efforts to save lives.
Jorge Moreira da Silva is on a seven-day field tour in the Middle East, starting Sunday in Lebanon, and Monday to Syria, and then to the West Bank, Gaza and Jerusalem. This tour aims to assess field needs and strengthen partnerships with governments and local authorities, as well as review existing projects and explore new horizons for cooperation.
In a special interview with UN News via video from Damascus, da Silva spoke about the tasks of the United Nations Office for Project Services and its role in promoting development and responding to humanitarian crises. He also highlighted the challenges facing reconstruction operations in Gaza, Syria and Lebanon, stressing the importance of coordinating international efforts to provide the necessary support to these areas.
In Gaza, Da Silva warned of the enormous challenges facing the reconstruction process, most notably the removal of rubble, describing the process as both urgent and complex. He stressed the need for all humanitarian actors to join forces to carry out the task, which he said would take a long time. “UNOPS is one of the largest UN agencies, and our mandate is focused on implementation. We do not engage in programming, we work on demand. We mainly cooperate with governments, sister UN agencies, and multilateral development banks such as the World Bank, to implement projects in the areas of infrastructure, procurement, project management, and fund management. We have 6,000 staff working in more than 100 countries, and it is difficult to find an agency that is more rooted in the concept of the humanitarian-development-peace nexus than UNOPS. We are not a purely humanitarian agency, nor a development or security agency, but we work across this spectrum. This is why most of the requests we receive from our partners are concentrated in fragile environments that suffer from conflict and violence. 50% of all our projects are implemented in fragile and violent conflict contexts, which is unfortunately the case in the Middle East.
Regarding the visit that began in Lebanon and the challenges there in terms of development and the projects they plan to implement or support the authorities in implementing, Da Silva said: Regarding the past, we have experience Strong in supporting the demining efforts in the country, as well as rehabilitating the areas affected by the Beirut port explosion in 2020. This is precisely the project that we are developing now with the support of Germany. It is a project that includes integrated and sustainable work, such as rehabilitating public infrastructure, such as roads, water, renewable energy, and restoring green spaces.
For example, I visited a park that we are rehabilitating, covering more than 20,000 square meters in downtown Beirut, as well as rehabilitating and rebuilding some municipal buildings, and also building the capacity of civil servants. This is one example of a project whose first phase we have already concluded. We are now concluding the second phase. The waste management project is an ongoing project and is of great importance in Lebanon. Currently, there are a large number of open dumps in Lebanon, which of course represents an environmental and public health problem. We are dealing with this problem in partnership with the government, developing solutions for waste management and promoting the circular economy.
As for the future, it is clear that there is a need for more infrastructure. The country was devastated by the war. The number of destroyed buildings and destroyed infrastructure requires a great effort to rebuild. I also have efforts on climate action, both mitigation and adaptation, and supporting the country in health, both in terms of supply and infrastructure. These are areas that we have been working on for ten years in Lebanon. And now we believe that there are opportunities for further development. This is an important moment in Lebanon. The past year has been very difficult in the country. The past decade has been very difficult. But now there is an opportunity, and it is an opportunity that cannot be missed. I think it is important that we all mobilize all the goodwill to partner with the people of Lebanon and also “my tours include Lebanon, Syria, the West Bank, Gaza and Jerusalem. UNOPS has been present in this region for over 50 years, so we are not newcomers and we are not just here to respond to recent developments, but we are part of ongoing efforts that have been going on for many years. For example, in Syria, we were a key player in the removal of chemical weapons over ten years ago. We also worked in Gaza on providing fuel and managing the mechanism of Security Council Resolution 2720 to facilitate the entry of humanitarian aid. In Lebanon, we were involved in implementing integrated solutions in the areas of infrastructure, health, energy, rehabilitation of roads and municipalities. This is a critical moment in the Middle East, with a new leadership in Lebanon, a new regime in Syria, and a ceasefire in Gaza. It is essential to ensure that UN agencies are prepared to expand their work. The traditional approach will not suffice, we need to implement projects on a large scale, and also mobilize the international community. This is a moment of truth, where it becomes necessary not only Not only to provide the humanitarian assistance required, but also to provide the necessary capabilities for early recovery and reconstruction. That is why, during this mission, I visit my colleagues and interact with governments, local authorities and partners, and visit existing projects, to understand how they are being implemented and to identify new needs that require a broader response.