UN Agency Estimates Rebuilding Gaza Will Cost $30-40 Billion

A UN agency warned Thursday that rebuilding war-torn Gaza will cost between $30 billion and $40 billion and will necessitate a scale of effort unprecedented since World War II.

“The United Nations Development Programme’s initial estimates for the reconstruction of… the Gaza Strip exceed $30 billion and may reach $40 billion”, said UN Assistant Secretary-General Abdallah al-Dardari.

“The scale of the destruction is enormous and unparalleled… This is a mission that the global community has not faced since World War II”, Dardari continued.

He went on to say, “If Gaza’s reconstruction were to go normally, it could take decades, and the Palestinian people do not have the luxury of waiting decades”.

“It is therefore important that we act quickly to re-house people in decent housing and restore their lives to normal — economically, socially, in terms of health and education”, Dardari added.

“This is our top priority, and it must be achieved within the first three years following the cessation of hostilities”, Dardari noted.

He estimated that the overall rubble from shelling and explosions amounted to 37 million tonnes.

“We are talking about a colossal figure, and this figure is increasing every day”, Dardari stated.

“The latest data indicates that it is already approaching 40 million tonnes”, he added.

According to the UN official, 72 percent of all residential buildings have been completely or partially destroyed.

“Reconstruction must be planned carefully, efficiently, and with extreme flexibility because we do not know how the war will end and what kind of post-war governance would be established in the Gaza Strip”, the UN official continued.

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