The Provincial Council of Cuenca finances 43,000 euros in humanitarian aid for Gaza

The Provincial Council of Cuenca has resolved the call for International Development Cooperation grants (Modality B) for Humanitarian Action and Emergency for 2026, awarding a total of 43,000 euros to two humanitarian projects in the Gaza Strip. The resolution, adopted by Presidency Decree no. 6,646 of August 31, 2026 (rectified by Decree no. 7,029 of September 10), is published in the Official Gazette of the Province of Cuenca (NO. 2158).

The call was approved by Presidency Decree no. 3,487 of May 14, 2026, and is processed in accordance with Law 38/2003, of November 17, General Law on Subsidies. The resolution is issued following the Fund Intervention report no. 2026FL/1040 of August 24, 2026, and the assessment of the Monitoring and Evaluation Commission, which awarded 9 scale points to the three projects submitted.

Two projects in Gaza, funded

The Provincial Council grants the full requested subsidy to two NGOs operating in the Gaza Strip:

• UNICEF — Project to respond to the humanitarian needs of children in Gaza, including the acquisition and distribution of nutrition supplies. Total cost: €21,500; grant awarded: €21,500.
• Asamblea de Cooperación por la Paz — Emergency humanitarian response project for the protection of life, basic rights, and the dignity of the displaced Palestinian population in the Gaza Strip. Total cost: €22,050; grant awarded: €21,500.

Both projects pursue SDGs 1, 2, 3, and 16, and are aimed at ensuring the survival of those affected by the armed conflict through the urgent provision of basic goods and services.

Red Cross, unfunded due to exhausted credit

The third project submitted, by the Spanish Red Cross, remains unfunded in this call as the available credit has been exhausted. This concerns the project for the promotion of the integral development of students with disabilities in the Sahrawi refugee camps of Tindouf (Algeria), with a total cost of €200,000 and a requested grant of €11,575, which is ultimately set at €0.00.

As a tie-breaking criterion, since both Gaza and the Sahrawi camps lack an Inequality-adjusted Human Development Index (IHDI), the suitability of each project to the priorities of Modality B—which prioritizes emergency situations resulting from armed conflicts—was assessed.

Conditions and deadlines

The committed expenditure amounts to 43,000 euros, charged to budget line 306 231 4800024 (Humanitarian Cooperation Fund). Payment will be made as a total advance payment, and the deadline for justifying the grant will end on April 30, 2028; a lack of or insufficient justification will lead to full or partial reimbursement, including late payment interest.

The resolution, signed by the deputy for Social Services, Equality, and Development Cooperation, Eva García García-Marquina, is final and concludes the administrative process; a motion for reconsideration may be filed with the Presidency within one month, or a contentious-administrative appeal may be filed with the Contentious-Administrative Court of Cuenca within two months.

The grant consolidates the commitment of the Provincial Council of Cuenca to international cooperation in a context of humanitarian emergency aggravated by the conflict in Gaza, while simultaneously highlighting the budgetary limitations of the Humanitarian Cooperation Fund, which excludes a project aimed at the Sahrawi refugee population.

Source: Official Gazette of the Province of Cuenca, no. 106, Monday, September 14, 2026, Provincial Council of Cuenca section, pp. 2-5 (official reference: NO. 2158).