The United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS)
UNOPS Executive Director concludes Syria visit
Statement attributable to Jorge Moreira da Silva, UN Under-Secretary-General and UNOPS Executive Director. He made the statement after visiting Syria, as part of a six-day Middle East visit to Lebanon, Syria, Occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel. As part of this visit, he will visit UNOPS projects in Gaza, for a second time.
UNOPS is committed to supporting Syria’s path towards a peaceful and inclusive future.
Syria continues to face a massive humanitarian crisis, including one of the largest displacement crises in the world. With the political transition, Syria stands at a moment in history. The moment of opportunity and responsibility cannot be missed.
UNOPS has remained in Syria throughout the last decade, delivering projects amid ongoing conflicts. We have been addressing some of the most critical challenges affecting the Syrian population both in Syria and within the neighbouring countries and communities hosting the Syrian refugees.
Our work in Syria has been wide-ranging. We helped remove chemical weapons in 2014 and provided operational support to UN partners including the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and UN-HABITAT. UNOPS also supports humanitarian mine action in Syria, and we help rehabilitate educational and health infrastructure, providing renewable energy solutions, and procuring medical equipment and supplies.
UNOPS is also working to bring together efforts across humanitarian, development and peace sectors, through The Nexus Response Mechanism. This will support the early recovery efforts for the local communities through enhanced access to livelihood opportunities, strengthened capacities of civil society organizations, and local and municipal service providers.
These are crucial efforts, given the scale of needs following years of conflict. To help Syrians lay the foundations for sustainable peace and prosperity, we have an urgent responsibility to support efforts to improve education, healthcare, and livelihoods.
After five decades of brutal rule, the people of Syria stand at a moment of hope.
Today, in my meetings at the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Education, I was glad to hear high expectations about UNOPS contribution to early recovery and reconstruction through our capacity for infrastructure, procurement and project management.
UNOPS – along with the UN family – stands with the Syrian people. We are committed to staying and delivering, to support a future determined by the people of Syria, that honours unity, sustainable development and human rights.
