GAPS     

Gaza:

• Durable solutions for newly and old IDP families due to frequent escalations through urgent shelter repair and restoration interventions to reduce the IDPs caseload and ending the displacement and suffer of prioritized families.
• Shelter rehabilitation to create adequate living space with integrated hygienic WASH facilities for the most vulnerable households, with particular focus on families at higher risk of being affected from COVID 19 ,FHH, PWDs,  and the people highly impacted by the deteriorated economic situation.
• Timely Winterization interventions for families living in houses lacking proper waterproofing and usually unprotected from extreme weather conditions in winter is required sealing off works to reduce and prevent water infiltration during rainy days as well as provision of necessary NFIs.
• The last escalation, COVID-19, and the associated deterioration in the economic situation of many vulnerable households had put additional number of tenants at higher risk of eviction where urgent transitional cash support is needed to avoid further displacement and unhygienic shelter environment.
• Keeping adequate level of Shelter/NFIs stocks to provide timely responses for any unforeseen emergences.

WB:

• Shelter rehabilitation and upgrading for the people living in communities located entirely in area C to achieve the minimum shelter standards.
• Urgent support of vulnerable families displaced or at risk of forcible displacement in area C and EJ who are facing mounting obstacles to have shelter solutions particularly in extreme weather conditions.  
• Replenish the stocks with sufficient amount of emergency Shelter/NFIs to cover any mass demolition or displacement.

Sufficient funds, unrestricted access to construction materials, unimpeded access of humanitarian actors to support displaced families are key factors to fulfil the mentioned priorities.

Challenges

    Lack of funding remains the biggest challenge to achieve the overall shelter objectives. The funding level to the end of June 2021 is only 19% of the requested amount.

·         Due to COVID-19 pandemic and measures taken, substantial changes happened in the projects implementation mainly the difficulties in access to the sites, delaying or cancelation of different shelter activities like HH level assessments.

·         The Gaza May 2021 escalation for 11 days led to a delay in the shelter programs implementation, particularly the additional restrictions to access construction materials necessary for repair, rehabilitation and reconstruction aftermath escalation.

·         Projects implemented through contractors faced significant delays due to Palestinian Contractors Union strike announced on 28 Feb 2021until 23 May 2021.

·         The high increase of the building materials has a significant impact on the overall cost of shelter rehabilitation interventions.

Restricted access and applying different military orders by ICA particularly in area C and H2 areas hindered the partners to implement adequate humanitarian shelter solutions for the vulnerable people, as a result the people stay living in limited, overcrowded space and unhygienic conditions