Trump’s Board of Peace Unveils $2.45B Gaza Recovery Plan at UN General Assembly

Senior officials including Sir Tony Blair, Jared Kushner, and Steve Witkoff meet in New York to outline rebuilding phases, funding goals, and upcoming regional security strategies.

former uk prime minister and board member sir tony blair told the meeting: "the responsibility on us is huge"

🌐 Gaza Recovery Plan & Funding Goals

US President Donald Trump's Board of Peace has announced a Gaza recovery plan worth $2.45bn (£1.85bn) during a meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.

The funding will be spread across 66 programmes over six months, and directed at housing, diesel generation and waste removal, among other needs.

But the board admitted substantial donations were still needed, with $18bn pledged but only $280m handed over so far. The board estimates full recovery and reconstruction will require about $71.4bn over the next decade.

⚡ Stakeholder Commitments & Challenges

Jared Kushner, Gaza Executive Board member and Trump's son-in-law, conceded the project faced "different delays on different things, for whatever reason". "The goal of today was really just to show you that we're really fully committed to doing it," he told the meeting of board members and stakeholders.

He was joined in New York by US envoy Steve Witkoff, who said the group had made "real progress" over the past year. "All of the hostages are home. There is a ceasefire, imperfect as it may be, but it still exists. Humanitarian efforts have achieved historic results," Witkoff added.

In addition to fundraising, the plan faces significant challenges including how to ensure security for those operating in Gaza, overhaul internal governance and find consensus between Israeli and Palestinians officials.

watch related coverage: un general assembly gaza recovery and peace board discussions

🚀 Ground Realities & Reconstruction Steps

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told a separate press conference on Wednesday that "a number of countries have stepped forward and pledged financial assistance" and the board was "looking for more that will participate in that".

Michael Eisenberg, an Israeli-American Board of Peace member, told the BBC's Newshour programme what the next steps were likely to be: "Because it's a war zone, you need to remove unexploded ordnance. And then there are still hundreds of kilometres of tunnels underneath Gaza which need to be destroyed as well."

"Once that's all done, Gazans can get to rebuilding again: whether it's housing, or better sanitation, or other things," Eisenberg added.

🛡️ Security Concerns & Political Roadblocks

In August, a senior official on the Board of Peace, Nickolay Mladenov, warned that a collapse of last October's ceasefire would be "a point of no return" for the region, while noting continuing air strikes and regional tensions.

The Board of Peace was created as part of Donald Trump's 20-point Gaza peace plan, unveiled alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in September last year. Hamas agreed to return hostages and hand over governance to Palestinian technocrats, but disputes over disarmament and Israeli military presence remain unresolved.

Although originally envisioned as an international organisation intended to bring peace specifically to Gaza, the Board of Peace has since expanded its scope to include addressing conflicts worldwide.