A Letter from Anera's President
Just when we thought the news could not get any worse for Palestinians under occupation, or in camps in neighboring countries, it did. This year saw a complete freeze of US government support to Palestinians. The freeze affected Anera and our work in no small way, halting our USAID-funded Palestinian Community Infrastructure Development Project with $28 million left in funding. For years, the project, and similar ones before it, with support from the American people, helped Palestinians build stronger, healthier communities and a better chance for long-term peace and prosperity.
Thanks to supporters like you, though, we are still building. Just this past year, in partnership with individuals, families, foundations and institutions, we built a lot: six new kindergartens to add to the 200 schools Anera constructed in the past eight years, giving 32,000 preschoolers a head start in life. In just three months, we built 104 greenhouses, for women-led and vulnerable households in Gaza, that generate about three times the average GDP per owner. And, we’re working with 180 women in the West Bank and Gaza to help them build their businesses. In Lebanon this year, in response to the ongoing garbage crisis, Anera built three large sorting and composting facilities to recycle solid waste in Bekaa, reducing waste, improving the environment and building social cohesion among refugee and host communities. We also rebuilt the emergency rooms in the busiest hospital in Burj el Barajneh Camp, improving access to health care for 35,000 residents. Finally, in Jordan, we are building back our programs after a several year absence, beginning with a partnership with a coding academy training the next generation of Palestinian technology leaders.
Thank you for your support. Let us pledge to continue our work together, helping hope find a way
in the Middle East.
In gratitude,
Sean Carroll
FINANCES
Thanks to you and our local in-country partners, Anera delivered humanitarian relief and sustainable health, education, and economic development projects totaling more than $48.8 million in 2019.
spent on projects and programs in the Middle East
Please see Anera's audited financial reports for more information.
HEALTH & RELIEF
With your support in 2019...
$30.8
Million
worth of vital medicines and relief supplies distributed in Palestine and Lebanon.
2,090
Families
received nutritious and filling food parcels during Ramadan in Lebanon and Gaza.
1,000
Women
attended awareness sessions on menstrual hygiene in three of Lebanon’s Palestinian camps.
35,000
Patients
got access to improved medical services through the rehabilitation of a hospital in Lebanon.
46,000
Refugee Children
received a pair of TOMS shoes — for some, their first new shoes ever.
“It scared me when the [old] machine stopped working in the middle of my session. I had to wait until they fixed and cleaned it.”
- Haja from Gaza City, Palestine
Haja, along with 458 other patients, relies on the dialysis unit at Al-Shifa Hospital twice a week. Anera donated 10 new machines to the hospital.
“Health is a crown only seen by those who lose it.”
- Halima from Beit Anan, Palestine
Halima is well known for her goat cheese. Infected with a parasite on the farm, Halima got better quickly with Anera delivered medicine.
“We would like to thank everyone who remembered us during the storm with fuel, heating and food baskets.”
- Syrian refugee in Alkaram camp in Arsal, Lebanon
A big snow storm hit Lebanon and made conditions in tent camps miserable. Anera donors helped 500 families with food packages, blankets, fuel and lamps.
EDUCATION
With your support in 2019...
5,041
Refugee Youth
learned Arabic, English, math and valuable job skills across Lebanon.
610
Children
with special needs gained access to rehabilitated educational, physical and cognitive therapy facilities in Jerusalem.
63
Teachers
trained on using expressive arts in preschool classrooms in Gaza.
6
New Preschools
built in the West Bank, giving hundreds of prechoolers access to vital education.
155
Coaches
trained to become agents of positive change among vulnerable young people in Lebanon.
“I’d like to dedicate the school to the memory of my father who was a very proud Palestinian. He greatly valued education and family.”
- Kathleen from Cincinnati, Ohio
Kathleen and Jim Stengel donated the funds to build a new preschool in Ni’lin, West Bank. They visited Palestine for the first time to be at the school opening.
“When women from my community need [plumbing] help while they are home alone, they feel more comfortable inviting a woman into their home... I can fill that gap for them.”
- Nivine from Tripoli, Lebanon
Nivine completed an Anera course on plumbing, solar and heating systems. Now she plans to start her own plumbing business.
“The project helped us relieve our own stress and enabled us to identify what children are suffering from and how to help them.”
- Ala’ teacher at Awdah Kindergarten, Gaza, Palestine
Ala’ was one of 63 Gaza preschool teachers who took part in Anera’s expressive arts trainings.
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
With your support in 2019...
26,500
Palestinians
now have reliable connections to potable water in the West Bank and Gaza.
100
Women
entrepreneurs enrolled in a program to start or build up small businesses in the West Bank.
104
Families
in Gaza grew fresh produce and earned much-needed extra income in new greenhouses.
9,000
Volunteers
became champions of recycling, actively participating in home solid waste sorting in Lebanon.
1
Facility
for wastewater reuse added a reservoir and pumping station to enable park irrigation and fire-fighting in Ramallah.
“I like to begin my day early inside the greenhouse. My life revolves around the progress of my plants. It’s not just a source of income for me, it’s my passion. It’s exciting!”
- Amena from Deir El Balah, Gaza, Palestine
Anera built a greenhouse on Amena’s land in Gaza. Amena is an excellent and devoted farmer. Her crops are bountiful.
“It pains my heart when olive trees that are hundreds of years old burn down.”
- Jameel from Ramallah, Palestine
Jameel, a firefighter, can now fill his fire engine using Anera’s wastewater reuse reservoir, enabling him to respond more quickly to fires.
“From now on, no more garbage smoke and horrible smells. Our environment will be able to heal and we must commit to keep it clean no matter what!”
- Niveen from Temnin El Foka, Lebanon
Niveen is an active participant in Anera’s recycling project in her Bekaa Valley town, where Anera’s solid waste-sorting facilities and engagement programs are transforming attitudes towards environmentalism.
In 2019, Anera built six beautiful new preschools in the Palestinian towns of Bazariya, Deir Al Hatab, Madama, Nassaria, Ni'lin (pictured) and Qibya.
Feeding a hungry child is an act of compassion
— not a political statement.
Providing safe places for young people to
learn and grow helps build community
— not division.
Easing refugees’ suffering, caused by war and poverty,
should inspire our shared responsibility
— not controversy.
Giving disadvantaged families access to
reliable livelihoods creates peace
— not conflict.
Ensuring that our most vulnerable communities
have access to clean water is a right
— not a privilege.
As a human being,
standing up for those who need help
is not a difficult decision.
Will you join us?
