Palestinian Authority minister calls for respect from Board of Peace for sustainable Gaza reconstruction

SINGAPORE - Any international effort to reconstruct Gaza – including by US President Donald Trump’s newly launched Board of Peace – will not be sustainable if it excludes the Palestinian Authority, its Finance and Planning Minister Estephan Salameh cautioned.

“We would like the Board of Peace to respect the role of the Palestinian Authority as the entity that has the institutions on the ground,” he told The Straits Times at an interview.

“We have our own banking system, legislation, property rights – all of these things that need to be respected instead of inventing a new thing.”

Dr Salameh was in Singapore from Feb 22 to 25 for his first official visit at the invitation of Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan.

The Palestinian Authority exercises limited self-rule in parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank under agreements with Israel.

Dr Salameh noted that the Palestinian Authority supported the Board of Peace primarily out of an urgent need to end the war in Gaza. However, he expressed scepticism over the board’s actual viability, despite the billions of dollars it has received in pledges.

“Let’s hope first that this money will come because there is a big difference between pledges and disbursements,” he said.

Mr Trump launched the Board of Peace on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos on Jan 22. The UN Security Council approved its formation in November 2025 as a transitional administration of Gaza until the Palestinian Authority satisfactorily completes its reform programme.

Though marketed as a US-led international body to oversee Gaza’s reconstruction, its ambitions are seen to extend beyond that.

Critics argue that the Board of Peace serves primarily as a vehicle to cement Mr Trump’s ambitions as an international peacemaker, while supplanting the role of the United Nations.

“We did welcome the UN Security Council, and we did also welcome Trump’s plan. The main reason for our position is that we wanted the war to end, and we welcome any efforts to end the war and to help our people,” Dr Salameh said.

“The role of the Palestinian Authority is key to ensuring the unity of the country and the unity of our people and the future of Palestine. This is why we welcome anybody’s help as long as they respect those principles, to keep Palestine as one country, one people, and to protect our people and to help our people recover after the war.”

More than two dozen countries, including the Gulf states, Israel and Indonesia, have joined the US-led international body, with more than US$17 billion (S$21.5 billion) pledged to date.

Dr Salameh was emphatic about his government’s continued involvement in Gaza, even though the Palestinian Authority effectively lost access to the Gaza Strip in 2007 when it came under the administration of Hamas, a Palestinian militant group.

“We still pay more than 67,000 staff and retirees in Gaza until today. For the past 20 years, even during the time of separation between the West Bank and Gaza, the Palestinian Authority continued to provide services to our people in Gaza and pay for the staff in Gaza.”

Singapore partnership

In Singapore, Dr Salameh also met Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, Acting Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs Faishal Ibrahim and Ministers of State Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim and Rahayu Mahzam. He observed part of the Parliament sitting during the Budget debate on Feb 24, and was hosted to a breaking of fast meal by Mr Zhulkarnain in his constituency.

“Singapore remains committed to supporting the Palestinian people and strengthening institutional capacity as they work towards eventual statehood. We had a good discussion on how Singapore can continue to be helpful in this process,” PM Wong posted on Facebook following their meeting.

A key focus of Dr Salameh’s trip was to learn from Singapore’s technical education and its digital economy, which could serve as blueprints to emulate in parts of the West Bank administered by the Palestinian Authority.

Singapore recently expanded its capacity-building programme for Palestinian Authority officials with the launch of two new courses for 2026. Since the start of the Israel-Hamas conflict, Singapore has contributed more than $25 million in humanitarian aid for civilians in Gaza, including a latest tranche of $1 million announced in December 2025.

Dr Salameh’s itinerary in Singapore included a visit to the Institute of Technical Education College West.

The minister also said he was deeply grateful for the Republic’s solidarity with civilians in Gaza facing horrific conditions.

“I do believe that we have a lot to learn from Singapore, and we are very keen to strengthen our friendship, our partnership,” he said, drawing particular attention to Singapore’s assistance in building the capacity of its people and institutions to govern.

International partnerships such as this are key to helping the Palestinian Authority build its state structure as it looks towards the “Day After” – a future post-conflict period in the region where an independent Palestinian state and Israel are able to co-exist under a two-state solution.

The immediate reality facing the Palestinian Authority, however, is stark.

Dr Salameh is steering a finance ministry starved of its tax revenues and burdened by over $15 billion in debt.

This is in contrast to the alleged billions pledged by member states of Trump’s Board of Peace towards Gaza’s reconstruction.

Cautious optimism

Despite recent developments, the threat of renewed conflict between Israel and Hamas looms as the issue of Hamas’ disarmament remains a sticking point. Hamas maintains a considerable presence in the Gaza Strip and is involved in aspects of the territory’s administration.

“There is no guarantee that the war has ended completely. As you know, even after the ceasefire, Israel destroyed more than 2,500 structures and killed more than 500 people,” Dr Salameh said. “The war has changed shape, but it didn’t fully end. So our biggest concern is that the fighting will resume.”

Against this volatile backdrop, Dr Salameh said he was “cautiously optimistic” about Palestine’s long-term future, citing the international actors who continue to actively invest in Palestinian state-building.

Other than the capacity-building agreements with Singapore, the Palestinian Authority has developmental partnerships with the European Union and the World Bank.

As he prepares to return to a government facing unprecedented challenges, he is bringing back more than just economic blueprints from his Singapore visit.

Dr Salameh, who is a Palestinian Christian, visited the Armenian Apostolic Church of St Gregory the Illuminator. He also visited the Sultan Mosque and the Kampong Gelam area.

“People are modest, genuine, and I felt the warmth of people’s support for Palestine and the Palestinian people. This is something that I will always cherish, and I would take it back to my people,” he said.