On 13 July, the European Commission is convening the second meeting of the Palestine Donor Group (PDG), co-chaired by Commissioner for the Mediterranean Dubravka Šuica and Palestinian Authority’s (PA) Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa. 65 delegations gather in Brussels for the launch of a new Initiative for early recovery in Gaza and to discuss the Palestinian Authority’s Reform Agenda.

The meeting is delivering on two key outcomes: increased financial pledges through the PEGASE mechanism, and the launch of the Team Gaza Initiative. Participants include Ministers and senior officials from EU Member States and partner countries, as well as representatives of international and regional organisations and financial institutions. The meeting is attended for the first time by the High Representative of the Board of Peace, Nikolay Mladenov, and the Head of the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, Ali Shaath.

The meeting agreed on coordinated international efforts to provide enhanced financial support for early recovery efforts in Gaza. This is in line with the Gaza Peace Plan and the United Nations Security Resolution 2803, and complementary to other international efforts in this area. Commissioner Šuica is officially launching the “Team Gaza Initiative” bringing together €883.6 million of financial contribution to support early recovery actions in various sectors, to the benefit of civilians in Gaza. The Initiative is rooted in the Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment for Gaza (April 2026) released by the European Union, the United Nations and the Word Bank. It is intended to coordinate early recovery projects in Gaza to address the restoration of basic services for the population; this would include water and sanitation infrastructure, debris and solid waste management and removal, and restoring health, energy, agriculture and food systems.

The PA is presenting the progress achieved on implementation of its Reform Agenda, including specific reforms under the agreed Reform Matrix with the EU. This includes significant improvement in fiscal and public spending sectors, reforms in public governance and measures to improve the business environment, the digitalisation of public services, and significant upgrades of the water and electricity management network. Moreover, the PA is presenting the additional steps taken to reform its social protection system and modernise its education system.

To securely and transparently channel funds to the Palestinian Authority, the Commission relies on PEGASE, a mechanism created by the EU in 2008 with high standards of control applied through ex ante audit and ex post verification. Donors under PEGASE contribute to the considerable reduction of transaction costs for financial support to the Palestinian Authority. It also allows for increased ownership, transparency and effectiveness of international contributions to the Palestinian Authority. Since its creation, PEGASE channelled support to Palestinian people for a total of €3.8 billion.