UN: $70 Bln needed to rebuild Gaza after 2 years of war

CAIRO - 16 October 2025: Around $70 billion will be required to rebuild the Gaza Strip and make it safe after two years of devastating war, UN development experts said on Tuesday, warning that far too little humanitarian aid is reaching Palestinians despite the recent ceasefire.

This was published in a press release published Tuesday on the UN official website, which stated that the UN Development Programme (UNDP) is present in Gaza alongside humanitarian partners to provide immediate support to the enclave’s 2.1 million people.

Jaco Cilliers, the UNDP’s Special Representative for Assistance to the Palestinian People, said that at least $20 billion will be needed in the next three years to launch reconstruction efforts. The estimate comes from a joint UN, EU, and World Bank assessment.

The UNDP, working alongside humanitarian partners, continues to deliver emergency aid including clean water, medical supplies, rubble clearance, and temporary employment for Gaza’s 2.1 million residents. "We’ve already removed about 81,000 tonnes of debris — around 3,100 truckloads — to open access for humanitarian workers," Cilliers said.

He noted "very positive indications" from potential donors, including Arab and European nations and the United States, which have expressed readiness to support early recovery efforts.

Humanitarian agencies, however, warn that aid deliveries remain insufficient. Despite Israel’s approval for 190,000 tonnes of relief supplies, access restrictions continue to delay assistance. "We are not getting enough aid in," said UNICEF spokesperson Ricardo Pires, adding that expectations for rapid improvement on the ground have not materialized.

The call for greater humanitarian access came after a ceasefire agreement was signed Monday in Sharm El-Sheikh by U.S. President Donald Trump and the leaders of Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey, marking an end to the two-year war.

Following the truce, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) began overseeing the transfer of deceased hostages from Gaza, while more than 300,000 Palestinians have reportedly begun returning north to Gaza City.

"Most of the actors – ICRC included – were not able to organize sufficient distribution of aid inside Gaza," said ICRC spokesperson Christian Cardon.. "And what we’ve seen instead, it’s people coming back from distribution sites being wounded, if not killed, in many instances…It’s about aid coming to the people and not any more people going to the aid."