Qatar has signed an agreement with the United Nations to provide shelter to more than 26,000 displaced people from war-torn Yemen.
The $3m deal was signed on Sunday between the Qatar Development Fund, Qatar Charity, and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) on the sidelines of the Doha Forum in the Gulf state’s capital.
A Qatar Development Fund official told Al Jazeera that the shelters will be located in Yemen and their construction will be supervised by the UNHCR.
The UN has been negotiating for peace between Yemen’s warring parties to end what it calls the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, which has killed 60,000 people and pushed a staggering eight million people – a number greater than the population of Switzerland – on the verge of famine.
The UNHCR says nearly two million Yemenis have fled to the neighbouring countries since the beginning of the conflict in 2014. An additional 280,000 refugees and asylum seekers languish in the country, mainly from the Horn of Africa.
Four new UN offices
The deal to settle Yemen refugees followed a host of partnerships Qatar signed with the UN earlier on Sunday in order to strengthen cooperation with the world body, including the establishment of four new UN offices in the country.
The UN and Qatar signed a memorandum of understanding, endorsing cooperation between both parties, which included the establishment of a Junior Professional Programme and a multi-year non-earmarked contribution of $500m to fund UN agencies.
Doha also signed an agreement with the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and an agreement with the UN Office for Counter-Terrorism.
The four new UN offices to be opened in Qatar are for the UNICEF, International Organization for Migration (IOM), UNHCR, and the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
The agreements were signed by Qatar’s Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and Antonio Guterres, the UN secretary-general on the sidelines of the Doha Forum.
Lolwah Al Khater, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the agreements signed underscore Qatar’s strong relationship with the United Nations.
“Qatar strongly believes in the power of multilateralism to advance agenda that serves all of humanity without discrimination against any sect. The UN through its incredible work embodies that multilateralism, and we are proud to be contributing to its success,” said Khater.
Noha Aboueldahab, visiting fellow at Brookings Doha Center, told Al Jazeera the moves were significant given the multiple humanitarian crises in the region.
“Increased UN presence in Qatar is a very positive development so it can formalise some of these processes and hopefully streamline them and make them effective,” Aboueldahab said.
