国际英语资讯:Feature: Palestinians in Gaza benefit from China-funded desalination plants_时事

国际英语资讯:Feature: Palestinians in Gaza benefit from China-funded desalination plants

In June last year, Give Palestine Association, a local nongovernmental organization, and the council of al-Naser village, signed an agreement to build two China-funded water desalination plants to alleviate the shortage of potable water there.

The Gaza Strip suffers from an acute lack of water for human and agricultural use. Currently, 90 percent of its main water supply is unfit for drinking and even agricultural use. Its coastal aquifer is extremely saline and is drying up because of overuse.

The overpopulated coastal enclave needs up to 220 million cubic meters of water a year, and over 90 percent of the population rely on desalinated water.

"About 10,000 people, the majority of whom are unemployed and suffer from extreme poverty, have benefited from the two plants," said Emad al-Agha, secretary of Give Palestine Association.

The two plants "are among the generously funded projects by the Chinese government which hopes to implement sustainable development projects in a way that benefits people over many years," al-Agha added.

The NGO's official noted the Palestinian people need continuous Chinese support to build their institutions and achieve economic development.

"We are looking forward to implementing more China-funded sustainable projects that will benefit our people in the Gaza Strip," he said, as local people "need to have a real solution for the water and electricity shortages which have affected negatively their daily life in the Gaza Strip."