The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will increase its involvement in humanitarian relief to refugees in the Middle East and North Africa Region, foundation officials have confirmed to Devex.
Over the next two years, the foundation will increase its funding toward humanitarian response in the region, having committed approximately $20 million to conflict-affected areas in the Middle East since 2013, the foundation’s head of Middle East relations, Hassan Al-Damluji, told Devex.* He said the likely areas of increased investment will include water, sanitation and hygiene, or WASH, as well as cash or fiduciary payments.
“We have agreed that we’re going to do even more … over the next couple of years because of the great need that’s there, and because of the belief that there’s one or two areas where we can be impactful,” Al-Damluji told Devex in an interview.
About the author
Molly Andersmollyanders_dev
Molly Anders is a former U.K. correspondent for Devex. Based in London, she reports on development finance trends with a focus on British and European institutions. She is especially interested in evidence-based development and women’s economic empowerment, as well as innovative financing for the protection of migrants and refugees. Molly is a former Fulbright Scholar and studied Arabic in Syria, Jordan, Egypt and Morocco.
