On 21 January, the Palestinian Authority (PA) launched a new plan of priority
interventions for 2010. ‘Palestine: Moving Forward, Priority Interventions for
2010’ was prepared by the Ministry of Planning and Administrative Development
(MoPAD) in conjunction with the Ministry of Finance. Bashar Juma’a, Coordinator of the Palestinian Reform and Development Plan (PRDP), told the Bulletin that the plan is designed to bridge the gap between the final phase of the PRDP and the government’s programme to establish the institutions of a Palestinian state within two years.

A second PRDP, covering the period 2011-2013, is currently in development.
The PA aims to absorb the priority interventions document and the two-year
plan into the second PRDP as much as possible.

The Ministry of Planning consulted line ministries over a four month period and
requested that Minsters identify which components of their budget should be
prioritised this year. The resulting plan includes 201 projects with an estimated
total budget of $5.5bn. $667m is required for projects to be undertaken in
2010. Juma’a told the Bulletin that this corresponds to the $670m investment
budget for 2010 in the existing PRDP. Four thematic areas were identified as
particularly important: the building of central and local government institutions;
the improvement of public service delivery; the construction of strategically
significant infrastructure; and the promotion of the Palestinian cause
internationally. 67% of the funding requested is for infrastructure projects. Priorities include
the construction of wastewater treatment facilities and desalination plants,
prisons, a railway network, a commercial port, at least one international airport
and a new national postal service. 50 of the prioritised projects are fully funded,
4 are partially funded, 14 have received only expressions of interests and 133
are unfunded. The total funding shortfall is $2.8bn.

The EU has already been discussing a financing package of €71m to support
the new plan. This would cover 15% of the PA’s overall investment budget for
2010. Final financing agreements are expected to be signed this May. The EU
funding will be targeted towards strengthening the rule of law, private sector
development, wastewater treatment, public financial management and social
protection. However the funds are expected to take several years to disburse
given that the tendering and implementation of such projects usually takes 18
to 24 months.

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