Palestinians and the people of the Global South share a historic and unparalleled bond

Forty-five years ago, the United Nations General Assembly inaugurated 29 November as International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.

But what does international solidarity mean to Palestinians? For us Palestinians, solidarity is a process of struggling together; of battling the structures and unequal systems that keep people oppressed. Mozambican freedom fighter and leader Samora Machel explained it best: “International solidarity is not an act of charity: it is an act of unity between allies fighting on different terrains toward the same objectives.”

Solidarity, then, is about developing reciprocal relationships between peoples. No nation is alone in its quest for justice and a dignified life – whether it is Palestinians fighting occupation, or people in any other nation fighting food and energy insecurity or economic inequality.

It is this concept of solidarity that also guides the work of the Palestinian International Cooperation Agency (Pica) – the main public diplomacy tool of Palestine that was established six years ago. Between 2016 and 2021, Pica worked on implementing development projects in health, agriculture, education, energy and water in 13 African countries.

Palestinian medical delegations shared expertise and know-how to enhance and strengthen the capacities of medical staff in Botswana, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea-Conakry, Mauritania, Mozambique and Tunisia. Palestinian doctors provided specialised training in the fields of emergency, trauma, burns, visual impairment, orthopaedics, ophthalmology, paediatrics, dental surgery, anaesthesia, obstetrics and gynaecology, and diabetes.

In Côte d’Ivoire and Mali, Pica staff engaged in media capacity building, while in Kenya and Mauritania, the mission provided solar energy panels and other renewable energy equipment to communities that lacked these essential facilities.

These projects are an attempt to help nations achieve several UN Sustainable Development Goals including health and well-being, quality education, clean water and sanitation, clean and affordable energy, peace, justice and strong institutions.

Pica’s focus, however, is not limited to Africa but spreads across the entire Global South including Latin America, the Caribbean and Asia.

This is because Palestinians and the people of the Global South share a historic and unparalleled bond, rooted in decolonisation, anti-racism, equality, justice and our inalienable right to self-determination. It is no coincidence that the overwhelming majority of the members and observers on the UN Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People (CEIRPP) are from the Global South. CEIRPP promotes the Palestinian peoples’ right to self-determination, national independence and sovereignty.

Nations in the Global South know our pain and appreciate and support the justness of our struggle for freedom from Israeli colonialism and apartheid.