Gaza Reconstruction Plan Features Building Of 200,000 New Housing Units - Palestinian Minister

(MENAFN- Trend News Agency) BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 21. Resolving the housing deficit within Palestine, particularly across the Gaza Strip, extends far beyond physical residential reconstruction to serve as a baseline vehicle for restoring human dignity, stability, and societal well-being, said Sami Hijjawi, Minister of Local Government of the Palestinian Authority, Trend reports.

The government official made the remarks during a session titled "Housing at the Centre of Crisis Recovery and Reconstruction" held within the framework of the 13th session of the World Urban Forum (WUF13) in Baku.

According to the minister, large-scale destruction across the Gaza Strip has left approximately 372,000 housing units damaged. Within this aggregate figure, roughly 60,000 units sustained partial damage and remain structurally viable for rehabilitation, while the vast majority have undergone total collapse or severe structural destruction.

He emphasized that the conflict has displaced approximately 2 million people-representing the overwhelming majority of Gaza's total population. Concurrently, across the West Bank, particularly within the Jenin and Tulkarm encampments, more than 10,000 residential units have sustained damage, forcing tens of thousands of citizens to flee their homes.

Hijjawi reported that the destruction has targeted more than just the residential housing stock, inflicting severe damage upon core water distribution networks, sewage systems, educational facilities, and healthcare infrastructure lines.

"True structural recovery cannot achieve viability solely by addressing immediate emergency humanitarian needs; it remains fundamentally dependent upon the parallel provision of safe, secure, and dignified long-term housing," he stressed.

According to the minister, the ultimate success of the rehabilitation trajectory hinges upon the mobilization of unified international political will, sustainable long-term financing pipelines, unhindered access to raw construction materials, streamlined international coordination, and the active integration of local communities directly into the decision-making cycle.

He noted that the proposed Palestinian recovery strategy operates on a structured five-year framework plan. The initial phase prioritizes the deployment of rapid transitional shelter solutions alongside the targeted repair of partially damaged properties. Building upon this baseline, the subsequent strategic phase targets the construction of at least 200,000 entirely new housing units.

Hijjawi added that the comprehensive reconstruction blueprint looking ahead must transcend simple residential real estate blocks, incorporating the parallel rebuilding of schools, medical centers, water utilities, and electrical grids to cultivate resilient, self-sustaining municipal ecosystems.

"For our governance structures, post-conflict reconstruction operates far beyond a standard technical engineering workflow. It represents an overarching humanitarian and moral responsibility geared toward restoring civic hope and forging a path toward an equitable, lasting peace," the minister concluded.

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