Harmala, Bethlehem Governorate – The Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Dr. Rajiv Shah, visited a new coeducational primary school and an expanded health care center in the West Bank village of Harmala, in the Bethlehem Governorate on Wednesday.

Over the past two and a half years, USAID has invested $5,600,000 in 13 projects to construct and rehabilitate schools and health clinics in Area C communities in order to improve access to services and increase opportunities for Palestinians living in Area C. USAID constructed a new coeducational primary school, renovated the Az Zeer Secondary School for Boys and expanded the Harmala Primary Health Care Center. Prior to USAID's intervention, primary school students were often forced to travel to neighboring villages to complete their education and village residents had to travel to Bethlehem for basic medical tests.

Dr. Shah said that the U.S. Government would continue to cooperate with the Palestinian Authority and the Government of Israel to “implement projects that address basic needs and improve the lives of Palestinians in Area C.”

The U.S. is the leading provider of bilateral development assistance to the Palestinians, having provided $4.5 billion since 1994 for programs in the areas of democracy and governance; education; health and humanitarian assistance; private enterprise; and water resources and infrastructure.

For more information on U.S. assistance, please contact: Sahar Kalifa at wbgpro@usaid.gov or call 03-511-4845.

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