‘Fun weeks' for 190,000 children in Gaza

The "Summer Fun Weeks" programme is organized by the UN’s Palestinian Refugee Agency, and will last almost a month. It will provide a "window of hope" for children, but faces the effects of the Strip’s energy crisis.

Gaza (AsiaNews) – Summer fun weeks (SFWs) is a programme that provides a “window of hope” to 190,000 children in Gaza, this according to Najwa Sheikh-Ahmad a public information officer with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).

Speaking to AsiaNews, Ms Sheikh-Ahmad explained that the programme is an attempt to provide a “safe, peaceful environment” full of “joy, happiness and fun” for kids. However, it will also have to cope with the territory’s energy crisis, which has been ongoing since April.

The SFWs began on 8 July and will run until 5 August, involving 115 schools and 125 locations. Over the course of these weeks, children will enjoy sports, soccer for boys and basketball for girls, as well as mural paintings and handicrafts, not to mention bouncy castles and trampolines for the younger children.

The programme “can contribute positively to physical and mental health, giving equal opportunities for boys and girls to participate in fun, supportive activities, alleviating distress amongst Gaza children,” Ms Sheikh-Ahmad said.

Parents have been consulted in the organisation of the weeks-long event, including the selection of entertainers “and the teams working at the different locations”.

With respect to children with disabilities, one of the weeks was held at the UNRWA rehabilitation centre for visually impaired. Seven other community-based rehabilitation centres have also been involved, giving “children a chance to play” and develop their skills.

However, the SFWs could not avoid the Strip’s ongoing power shortages and related costs. Cuts effect the “operation of SFW activities,” Ms Sheikh-Ahmad said. Costs have equally increased “since we depend on UNRWA school electrical generators to compensate the shortages and cuts of electricity to run the inflatable toys. This means consumption of more fuel”.

What is more, “In case of damage to the generators, maintenance means time and non-functioning toys that depend on electricity, especially inflatable toys. If the damaged generator needs spare parts this means that the students will lose part of their time (6 days) without benefiting from the main toys.”

Since April, Gaza has endured in a severe energy crisis, worsened by political squabbles between Fatah, which controls the Palestinian National Authority, and Hamas, which rules the Strip.

• palestine
• gaza
• Israel
• unrwa
• un
• summer fun
• power shortages