Doha: The Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Jasem Al-Budaiwi, confirmed that GCC countries are the fourth largest donors to relief and humanitarian aid worldwide, having provided USD 14 billion in official humanitarian aid between 2020 and 2025.
According to Kuwait News Agency, a statement from the GCC General Secretariat revealed that these remarks were made by Al-Budaiwi during his speech at the Doha Forum for Peace and Development event, themed "A Common Path to Stability," held alongside the high-level week of the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly.
Al-Budaiwi emphasized the interconnectedness of peace and development, stating that "the absence of development makes peace fragile and fleeting, while the absence of peace makes development an impossible goal." He underscored the GCC countries' commitment to achieving peace through dialogue and diplomacy.
The GCC chief highlighted the significant contributions of GCC countries to humanitarian and reconstruction efforts, noting that they have been at the forefront by providing approximately USD 14 billion in official humanitarian aid between 2020 and 2025. This contribution places them as the fourth largest humanitarian donor globally.
He further noted that GCC countries ranked first among the nations of the Global South as the largest humanitarian donors, based on data from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) for 2024. Last year alone, the GCC countries contributed a total of USD 3.04 billion.
Al-Budaiwi reviewed several initiatives and contributions by GCC countries, such as the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center's USD 25 million contribution to the World Food Program to assist vulnerable groups in Yemen, and the UAE's USD 828 million in humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.
He also mentioned Kuwait's role in hosting the Iraq Reconstruction Conference in 2018, where GCC countries pledged billions of dollars to support reconstruction, along with their ongoing support for the Palestinian people through official channels and humanitarian organizations.