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Germany and the Palestinian territories: Bilateral relations

15.03.2023 - Article

Germany is supporting the establishment of a future Palestinian state as part of a two‑state solution negotiated between the parties to the conflict. German-Palestinian stabilisation and development cooperation focuses on, among other things, helping set up the Palestinian civil police and promoting sustainable economic development, including employment promotion, above all for young people, as well as on promoting education and vocational training, local governance and civil society.

Germany is also supporting humanitarian organisations as they work to provide humanitarian assistance in the Palestinian territories. The focus is on emergency food aid, basic healthcare, psycho-social support and protective measures. The main project implementation partners are the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the World Food Programme (WFP) and the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

In 2022, exports from Germany to the Palestinian territories totalled some 121.5 million euro. Imports amounted to 58.5 million euro.

Germany is represented in Palestine with numerous cultural cooperation agencies. The Institut Français and the Goethe-Institut together run the French-German Cultural Center in Ramallah. The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) supports the exchange of students and researchers at Palestinian universities. Many German universities cultivate good relations with the universities in the Palestinian territories. Private foundations and projects are working to promote cultural activities as a means of strengthening ties between Germans and Palestinians. With Schmidt’s Girls College in East Jerusalem and the Talitha Kumi Evangelical Lutheran School in Beit Jala near Bethlehem, German church organisations operate two German schools abroad that prepare children for the German higher education entrance qualification (Abitur) and the Palestinian school-leaving certificate.

Alongside the Federal Government, some of the German Länder are also engaged in the Palestinian territories. There are currently eighteen project and city-twinning partnerships at the municipal level.

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