ANKARA/GENEVA — The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has received encouraging signals from several countries, including the United States, Arab states, and European nations, expressing readiness to help fund the estimated $70 billion needed to rebuild war-ravaged Gaza, a senior UN official confirmed on Tuesday.
“We’ve already had very good indications,” said Jaco Cilliers, UNDP’s representative, during a press conference in Geneva. While he stopped short of naming specific donors, Cilliers said discussions were progressing positively and highlighted the massive scale of destruction, estimating that the two-year Israel-Hamas conflict had produced at least 55 million tonnes of debris.
Meanwhile, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has pledged to mobilize international support for Gaza’s reconstruction under the new ceasefire deal. Speaking to reporters aboard his return flight from Sharm El-Sheikh, Erdogan said he would reach out to Gulf countries, the US, and European partners to secure swift financial backing for rebuilding efforts.
He also described recent decisions by Western nations to recognize the State of Palestine as critical steps toward a two-state solution, emphasizing that the rebuilding of Gaza must be part of a long-term peace framework.
The remarks come amid growing global attention on Gaza’s humanitarian crisis, with the UN estimating that rebuilding efforts could take years of coordinated international cooperation to restore housing, infrastructure, and essential services across the devastated territory.
