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Arab firms to vie for Gaza reconstruction launched by Qatar

29 May 2013 19:10 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. The Hamas-ruled government in Gaza said on Wednesday that the Qatari committee to reconstruct Gaza considers open competition for Arab companies to execute constructions plans, APA reports quoting Xinhua.

Abdul Salam Seyam, Hamas government's chief of staff said in a press statement that the Qatari committee to construct Gaza made the decision upon the demand of his government's ministry of construction and housing.

"We requested from the Qataris to join other Arab construction companies in the process in condition that Arab companies provide construction experts while the labor forces should be fully Palestinian," said Seyam.

A high-ranking Arab businessmen delegation visited in the Gaza Strip last week aiming at checking the possibility of sharing the Qatari committee in the process of reconstruction in the Gaza Strip.

In October last year, Qatar decided to donate 407 million U.S. dollars for executing projects of construction in the Gaza Strip. A Qatari committee was formed to observe the construction projects.

The Qatari donation finances construction in the Gaza Strip's infrastructure, building up a new city and a hospital for the handicapped Palestinians in the coastal enclave ruled by Islamic Hamas movement.

Meanwhile, the United Nations Relief and Work Agency (UNRWA) announced that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia aided UNRWA's budget with 86 million U.S. dollars for humanitarian projects in Gaza, West Bank and Lebanon.

UNRWA said in a press release sent to reporters that UNRWA signed three agreements in Riyadh between UNRWA's Commissioner General Filipio Grandi and the Saudi officials.

Over the past several months, UNRWA has announced that it suffers from a shortage in its budget which reached 66.9 million dollars.