In a ceremony held at BOP General Management HQ in Ramallah, BOP Chairman and General Manager Mr Hashim Al-Shawa and Mrs Raja’ Abu Ghazaleh from Give Palestine Association signed a partnership and support agreement. The signing ceremony was attended by BOP Board Member Maher Farah, BOP Assistant General Manager Hani Nasser and officials from BOP and Give Palestine Association.
According to the agreement, BOP will provide Give Palestine Association support for the amount of USD 100,000 for four years. The support aims to enhance the presence of the association and strengthen its aid to orphans and the needy, especially as the holy month of Ramadan is approaching.
Al-Shawa expressed his pride for the cooperation and partnership with Give Palestine Association, which provides services to all parts of the West Bank and Gaza Strip especially to rural and marginalized areas. He pointed out BOP strong belief that establishing partnerships with civil society institutions will enable the bank to reach out to the largest number of beneficiaries, disadvantaged families, the poor and orphans whose number is rising as a result of the difficult political and economic circumstances prevailing in Palestine.
In addition, Al-Shawa referred to humanitarian endeavors initiated by BOP to contain and alleviate the humanitarian crises that have knocked down the Palestinian people from time to time. BOP has designed a special program called “Gaza Is in Our Hearts” to support the health sector in Gaza and made donations for the renovation of houses affected by the recent snowstorm. Moreover, BOP has made significant contributions to alleviate the humanitarian crisis in Yarmouk refugee camp in Syria and others in the Philippines, Chile and Somalia. Furthermore, BOP has organized relief campaigns to secure the future of children that have been orphaned as a result of war on Gaza in 2011. According to Al-Shawa, BOP contributions to humanitarian endeavors last year amounted to USD 1 million.
Mrs Abu Ghazaleh expressed gratitude for the BOP valuable support, extolling the bank’s efforts to help the poor throughout Palestine. She appreciated the unique partnership between BOP and Give Palestine Association that dedicate their resources to humanitarian issues in the Palestinian society.
Give Palestine Association operates in Jerusalem and the villages located near the Separation Wall and Israeli settlements through relief and cultural programs. Give Association has succeeded in creating a voluntary, civil and professional institution capable of giving. It has also managed to mobilize a large number of male and female volunteers that perform quite a good portion of the association’s services. Give Palestine Association has a social database that is useful to social researchers.