National Early Recovery and Reconstruction Plan for Gaza 2014-2017_FINAL

59The work of these committees will need to explore options for affected personnel, including the options for earlyretirement, retraining, and job placement in the private sector or with non-governmental service providers. At thesame time, the consolidation process needs to take into account the existing civil servants in Gaza who have not beenon active duty for the past seven years and might require renewed training and capacity development to fulfill theirfunctions. The consolidation process will need to be guided by available fiscal resources and real needs on the groundin each sector.The reconsolidation of the public administration, however, will not be completed by harmonizing civil servants inGaza and the West Bank. Beyond civil servants, the Government will implement an action plan for national institutionalreintegration and for harmonizing the administrative legal framework. In doing so, the National Consensus Governmentwill adopt a sequenced approach and prioritize sectors crucial for service delivery, which simultaneously also containthe largest number of personnel.Reintegrating the rule of law system is important for functional social and economic ties between the West Bank andGaza. A functioning public administration furthermore requires freedom of movement within the country, whichincludes the ability to meet in person by traveling between the West Bank and Gaza, which under the Oslo Accordsconstitute a “single territorial unit”.The consolidation of the public administration will not only cement the National Consensus Government but will alsoimprove fiscal sustainability and effective service delivery for recovery, reconstruction, and longer-term development.However, this consolidation cannot be implemented overnight and will take several months.In the meantime, the smooth operation of central government institutions in Gaza needs to be safeguarded. Duringsuch a transition period, until the Legal and Administrative Committee concludes its works, it is essential that civilpersonnel engaged by the previous de facto authority receive compensation in the form of social allowances for sixmonths under a temporary mechanism, outside the government budget, enabling them to concentrate on their workwhile they and their families are provided for. This assumes that in parallel the Legal and Administrative Committee isable to assume its work aimed at resolving the status of this group and consolidating the civil service.This requires support to the Legal and Administrative Committee in defining a mechanism for expedited steps,sequenced by priority sectors, towards the consolidation of civil servants, institutions and applicable legal frameworks.Once the mechanism has been elaborated, its implementation will also require initial funding to accommodate andretrain civil servants for resuming their positions.4.4.2 Operational Capacity of Local Government InstitutionsRelief Early Recovery Reconstruction Total- $31m - $31mIn order to restore and maintain the operational capacity of local government units in Gaza for recovery and reconstruction tasks,the Government seeks immediate exceptional supplementary funding for municipal personnel for a period of six months. Fueland office supplies will also be provided.Restoring physical infrastructure and equipment for municipalities will be equally important in order to allow municipalities toprovide regular services, and support their role in the recovery and reconstruction effort.