UN Labor Body Report Shows 100 Pct Of Gazans Living Below Poverty Line

10/17/2024 6:58:08 AM

(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) GENEVA, Oct 17 (KUNA) -- The International labor Organization (ILO) on Thursday released a report revealing that poverty in the Gaza Strip has become nearly universal with nearly 100 percent of the population living under the poverty line.
The report highlighted also that poverty rates in the West bank have doubled rising from 12 percent in 2023 to 28 percent by mid-2024 due to the ongoing war, while unprecedented levels of unemployment in the Gaza Strip surged to nearly 80 percent, as compared to and adding that 34.9 percent in the West Bank, it showed.
According to the report the warآ's wider economic toll has also been substantial with real GDP declining in the OPT by an average of 32.2 per cent over the past year, while the West Bank saw a contraction of 21.7 per cent compared to the preceding 12 months, with GDP in the Gaza Strip dropped by 84.7 per cent.
The report noted that this contraction in real GDP is unprecedented in the OPTآ's recent history even during the most severe economic downturn of the second Palestinian uprising against Israeli occupation in 2001 real GDP fell by 14.9 per cent less than half the scale of the current decline.
On other key sectors severely impacted, construction was down by 47.3 percent and in manufacturing mining water and electricity declining by 35.4 percent, in addition to information and communication services, which suffered a decrease of 18.5 percent.
The UN body's director for the Arab region, Ruba Jaradat, said that the impact of the war in the Gaza Strip has taken a toll "far beyond loss of life desperate humanitarian conditions and physical destruction," adding that it fundamentally altered the socio-economic landscape of Gaza while also severely impacting the West Bankآ's economy and labour market.
The report is the fifth and latest in a series of publications by the ILO and the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics that assess the effects of the war in Gaza on the labor market and the broader economy in the occupied Palestinian territories. (end)
imk

MENAFN17102024000071011013ID1108791050

Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.