To: USAID/West Bank and Gaza (WBG) Implementing Partners
From: Daniel Harter, Supervisory Contracting / Agreement Officer
Office of Contracts Management (OCM), USAID/West Bank and Gaza
Subject: United Nations Relief and Works Agency Payment Restrictions
Dear Implementing Partners (IPs):
The purpose of this letter is to alert USAID IPs to a new restriction in the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024, effective March 23, 2024 (available here). Title III of Division G of the Act prohibits USAID funds from being used for any contribution, grant, or other payment to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA).
This restriction applies to all award mechanisms, including contracts, assistance awards, and other transactions, including awards to Public International Organizations, funded with appropriations from prior fiscal years as well as fiscal year 2024, and will apply to funding provided in fiscal year 2025, until March 25, 2025. Accordingly, financial transactions using USAID funding to UNRWA are prohibited. USAID contractors and recipients cannot use USAID funds for subawards, subcontracts, or vendor agreements, at any tier, with UNRWA.
We appreciate your efforts to ensure that USAID funds are used in compliance with applicable statutory requirements. If you have any questions regarding the restriction on use of funds for payments to UNRWA or should there be a contradiction between the guidance provided herein and your award terms and conditions, please contact OCM for further clarity and guidance.
