Ramallah, November 7, 2018 – A new Italian contribution to the PEGASE (Palestino-Européen de Gestion de l’Aide Socio-Economique) Mechanism has been agreed through the signature of a Memorandum of Understanding this morning.
The General Consul of Italy in Jerusalem Fabio Sokolowicz and the Minister of Finance and Planning Shukry Bishara signed the technical agreement for a total amount of 3,000,000 euro contribution for the period 2017/2019, at the presence of the Director of the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation Office in Jerusalem.
PEGASE was launched on the 1st of February 2008 by the European Commission to support the Palestinian National Development Plan. The mechanism aims to shift from emergency assistance to a sustainable Palestinian development process through support in four key sectors: governance, social development, economic and private sector development and public infrastructure development.
The Italian contribution to PEGASE, for a total amount of 30 million euro over the last ten years, is dedicated to the Direct Financial Support (DFS) component focusing on Civil Service and Pensioners, Vulnerable Palestinian Families, East Jerusalem Hospitals for the payment of patients’ medical referrals from the Palestinian Ministry of Health.