United Kingdom

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Country/TerritoryUnited Kingdom

Activity

  • The British government provides millions of pounds annually, through direct and indirect funding processes, to highly politicized non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that operate in the UK, Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza. However, reflecting a lack of transparency, a comprehensive list of local third-party implementing partners is not available.
  • NGO grantees receive direct funding from the  Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), the British National Security Council (NSC), and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), with funds disbursed by UK embassies, consulates, and representative offices.
  • Indirect NGO funding comes from aid frameworks such as Christian AidCatholic Agency for Overseas Development (CAFOD), and Oxfam GB, which all receive significant funding from the British government.

Direct UK Funding

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO)

  • In September 2020, the Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) and the Department for International Development (DFID) merged to form the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO).
  • According to FCDO’s Development Tracker website, the UK has allocated a total of approximately £15 million to the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem for 2022-2023. Of this amount, approximately 50% is allocated to “Government and Civil Society.”
  • FCDO is funding six active projects in the West Bank and Gaza, with a total budget of £448.1 million.
  • Information on projects funded by the DFID is available in a projects database. However, local NGO recipients and third-party recipients of UK funds via international organizations do not appear on the website.

FCDO Projects in Israel, Gaza, and the West Bank:

ProjectBudget Beneficiaries
British Academy Coherence & Impact - Challenge-led grants: Urban Infrastructures of Well-being£5,838,971
(2019-2022)
British Academy
Supporting Economic Empowerment and Development in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (SEED OPTs)£58,799,995
(2018-2025)
United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) ¦ Cowatersogema International Inc ¦ IMC Worldwide ¦ European Bank for Reconstruction and Development ¦ International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD)
Transparency, Evidence and Accountability Programme in the Occupied Palestinian Territories£1,950,000
(2020-2022)
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
Palestinian Security Sector Capability Accountability Sustainability and Inclusivity Programme in the Occupied Palestinian Territories£4,400,182
(2019-2022)
The Coalition for Accountability and Integrity - AMAN ¦ Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF) ¦ Palladium International Ltd (UK) ¦ Ernst & Young ¦ UK - Ministry of Defence
Supporting Palestinian refugees across the Middle East – in Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.£228,999,998
(2016-2022)
IOD PARC ¦ Oxford Policy Management ¦ United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA)
Support to the Palestinian Authority to Deliver Basic Services, Build Stability and Promote Reform in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (SSRP)£137,999,990
(2017-2022)
Georg Eckert Institute ¦ Ministry of Finance and Planning - Palestinian Authority ¦ Crown Agents Limited ¦ Oxford Policy Management ¦ Coffey International Development
Humanitarian Access in the Occupied Palestinian Territories£10,148,740
(2016-2022)
United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) ¦ United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) ¦ United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) ¦ World Food Programme (WFP)

Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC)

UK Direct Funding to Israeli NGOs

Information for 2021-2022 taken from quarterly reports submitted to the Israeli Registrar of Non-Profits and information for 2020 taken from annual reports submitted to the Israeli Registrar of Non-Profits. 

NGOSourceYearSum (NIS)
Comet-MEMFA UK20222,675,734
20211,195,938
20202,659,142
Geneva InitativeEmbassy UK2021395,307
2020287,493
GishaEmbassy UK202049,235
Physicians for Human Rights - IsraelEmbassy UK202144,500
Terrestrial JerusalemMFA UK2021119,175
202063,903

Indirect UK Funding

Christian Aid

Catholic Agency for Overseas Development (CAFOD)

Oxfam GB

  • In FY 2020-2021, Oxfam GB received £1.6 million from the United Kingdom.
  • In FY 2020-2021, Oxfam GB granted £155,000 to Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza for the “Reuse of treated wastewater for agriculture irrigation in southern part of Gaza strip” alongside the Palestinian Agricultural Relief Committees (PARC).
    • PARC’s rhetoric includes accusations of “apartheid,” “collective punishment,” “ethnic cleansing,” and “war crimes.”
    • According to PARC’s “2014-2018 Strategic Plan,” one of PARC’s strategic goals is “Holding the occupation accountable towards Palestinian rights related to the agricultural sector and rural areas” by “Boycotting…Israelis’ settlement products” and “Supporting the cooperation and coordination with the boycott committees.”
  • Oxfam GB draws an immoral symmetry between Israeli self-defense and illegal attacks by terror organizations, and fails to acknowledge Hamas’ exploitation of the civilian population of Gaza as human shields. Its statements refer to the blockade of Gaza as the key impediment to peace, failing to mention that the purpose of Israel’s blockade is to prevent the illegal flow of weapons to Hamas and other terror groups.
  • In 2013-2017, Oxfam GB granted NIS 936,272 to GishaB’TselemZochrotEmek Shaveh, and Yesh Din.

Funding via the United Nations

  • In 2020-2021, the UK government provided millions of dollars to various UN bodies, including United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS), and the World Food Program.

United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)

  • In 2021, the UK provided UNICEF with $2.7 million.
  • UNICEF spearheads a campaign to have Israel included on a UN blacklist of “grave” violators of children’s rights. The list appears as an annex to the UN Secretary-General’s annual report on Children and Armed Conflict (CAAC). This political agenda is a primary facet of UNICEF’s activities relating to Israel, completely inconsistent with its mandate of “child protection” and from its guidelines for neutrality and impartiality. (Read NGO Monitor’s report “UNICEF and its NGO Working Group: Failing Children”)

The United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS)

Funding to the World Food Programme

Indirect UK Funding to NGOs Active in the Arab-Israeli Conflict

NGOSourceYearSum
ACRIChristian Aid2021NIS 152,898
2020NIS 64,907
2019NIS 84,412
2018NIS 147,606
2017NIS 134,850
AdalahChristian Aid2022NIS 100,648
2021NIS 428,911
2020NIS 196,338
2019NIS 105,419
2018NIS 28,635
Breaking the SilenceCAFOD2021NIS 173,738
2020NIS 89,710
2019NIS 94,400
2018NIS 92,587
2017NIS 105,711
GishaOxfam - GB2017NIS 46,070
Yesh DinCAFOD2021NIS 194,484
2020NIS 150,266
Wi'amCAFOD2018-2020£50,284
Culture and Free Thought AssociationCAFOD2021-2022£29,663
WAC-MA'ANCAFOD2017-2019£66,000
EAPPICAFOD2021-2023£45,000
Jerusalem Legal Aid and Human Rights Center (JLAC)CAFOD2019-2022£90,000

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Further Reading