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Ammon News - AMMONNEWS - Minister of Foreign and Expatriate Affairs Ayman Safadi together with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) Commissioner-General, Pierre Krahenbuhl, Thursday agreed to hold a joint meeting next month to draw up a road map on programs to be launched with partners to ensure financial flows needed by the agency.

This came during a meeting here today, during which the officials discussed long-term financing mechanisms and means to drum up support to renew the UNRWA mandate, that would be put to the vote in 2019.

"The meeting came in complement with the systematic coordination process that Jordan initiated to ensure a steady flow of funds needed for the performance of UNRWA's vital functions for more than 5 Palestinian refugees", Safadi told reporters in a joint press briefing with Krahenbuhl.

The top diplomat explained that the UN agency started 2018 with a cash deficit of more than $440 million, however, through partners and friends "We managed to cut down the shortfall to lower than $20 million."

He, moreover, went on saying that ensuring the sustained performance of the UNRWA is Jordan's top priority, lauding efforts of Krahenbuhl in this regard.

For his part, the Commissioner-General hailed His Majesty King Abdullah's tremendous endeavors to close the largest budget gap in the history of UNRWA.

Jordan, he said, stood up for the UN human development agency in ways that can not be put in words, championing every new initiative to mobilize support to the UNRWA.