An urgent appeal to support maintenance and operation costs after the collection rate dropped to less than 30% due to the repercussions of the coronavirus and the siege.
Urgent Appeal
To Support the Maintenance and Operation Costs of Water and Sanitation Facilities
CMWU – Gaza – Palestine
Amid the deteriorating economic situation in the Gaza Strip and the continuation of the Israeli siege for more than 14 years, which has led to a decline in bill collection rates, with the collection rate recently not exceeding 30%. Despite this, CMWU has worked in cooperation with the municipalities and with the help of some donor institutions to operate and maintain water and sanitation facilities to ensure the continuation of the service, but there remains a large gap in covering the maintenance and operation costs of these facilities, particularly after the operation of recently constructed facilities such as seawater desalination plants and the Central sewage treatment plants.
As a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and the government's declaration of a state of emergency in Palestine to prevent the pandemic's spread, the deterioration of the economic situation has increased and income sources have stopped for a large segment of Gazan society, which has made collection rates during the current period nearly nonexistent, so CMWU has become unable to cover maintenance and operation costs and secure the minimum wages for the operating crews, despite the fact that the current period requires increasing water production and continuing to provide services to ensure residents' compliance with the guidance and messages recently issued by the World Health Organization and the Palestinian Water Authority to limit the pandemic's spread and protect workers in the water sector.
CMWU affirms that if the crisis continues without intervention from the relevant bodies, water services are threatened with collapse as a result of the deficit in covering operation and maintenance costs, which include supplying spare parts, fuel needed to operate vehicles and generators, and materials and equipment to disinfect water and sanitation facilities, in addition to securing the operating crews' salaries at the minimum level to meet their families' needs amid this crisis.
From here, CMWU issues an urgent call and appeal to all government bodies, local and international institutions, and donor bodies to support CMWU's needs and contribute to covering part of the maintenance and operation costs, to ensure the continuation of water and sanitation services in the Gaza Strip at the minimum level.
