Once known as a state-of-the-art facility that delivered high quality health services, Jerusalem’s Al-Makassed hospital is now practically broke.  As a Jerusalem Post article pointed out last week, the Palestinian Authority’s failure to pay millions of dollars for referral cases not only undermines the quality of care for tens of thousands of patients, but also threatens […]

A couple of weeks ago, Elizabeth Arend posted about the disastrous health consequences of water pollution in Gaza, and the importance finding solutions to environmental health problems. An effort in this direction came up in a recent Associated Press article that profiles a Palestinian Authority (PA) environmental education initiative in Ramallah. Supported by recent funding […]

UNFPA’s new report, “Trends in Maternal Mortality: 1990-2010,” includes great news for women of reproductive age.  Globally, the total number of deaths during pregnancy and childbirth decreased by 47% from 543, 000 in 1990 to 287, 000 in 2010. Although the overall decline in maternal death is cause for celebration, the picture gets more complicated […]

Today’s feature in the Guardian’s “Global Development” blog sheds light on pollution in the Gaza Strip from the perspective of its most vulnerable residents–its children.  Primary school children from al-Zarqa, one of Gaza’s poorest areas, created pictures to illustrate their hopes and wishes for clean, safe neighborhoods in which to live, go to school and […]

In June, I’ll take my first trip to Palestine in my capacity as ACP’s executive director. In addition to meeting our partners at the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Health and USAID, I am eager to meet the people who have benefited from ACP’s previous projects in the West Bank. Our most recent fundraising effort, […]