The situation for 1.5 million Palestinians in
the Gaza Strip is worse now than it has ever
been since the start of the Israeli military
occupation in 1967. The current situation in
Gaza is man-made, completely avoidable and,
with the necessary political will, can also
be reversed.
Gaza has suffered from a long-term pattern of
economic stagnation and plummeting development
indicators. The severity of the situation has increased
exponentially since Israel imposed extreme
restrictions on the movement of goods and people
in response to the Hamas take over of Gaza and to
indiscriminate rocket attacks against Israel.
This report illustrates the gravity of the current
situation across key sectors.
Humanitarian Access
Movement in and out of Gaza is all but impossible
and supplies of food and water, sewage treatment,
and basic healthcare can no longer be taken for granted.
As a result of the blockade and collapse of the
economy, there is little money to buy food and
limited food to buy. Food prices are rising and
wheat flour, baby milk, and rice, among other
essential goods, are increasingly scarce. During
the period of May-June 2007 alone, these
commodity prices rose 34%, 30% and
20.5% respectively (1).
As the humanitarian crisis intensified,
the number of trucks carrying commercial
and humanitarian supplies into Gaza plummeted.
In the months prior to the tightening of the blockade
around 250 trucks a day entered Gaza with supplies
(2), now the Sufa crossing is only able to deal with a
maximum of 45 trucks a day (3). In most cases,
this number is barely reached.
Poverty and Dependency on Food Aid
The number of people living in absolute poverty in
Gaza has increased sharply. Today, 80% of families
in Gaza currently rely on humanitarian aid compared
to 63% in 2006 (4). This decline exposes unprecedented
levels of poverty and the inability of a large majority of
the population to afford basic food. In 2007, this meant
that on average, households were spending approximately
62% of their total income on food compared
with 37% in 2004(5).
As a result, food aid increased dramatically to meet
the needs of this increasingly impoverished
population. In 2008, there are over 1.1 million people
– some three-quarters of Gaza's population – who are
dependent on food aid. In less than ten years, the number
of families depending on UNRWA food aid increased ten-fold(6).
Unemployment
Unemployment in Gaza is close to 40% and is set
to rise to 50% (7). The private sector – that generates
53% of all jobs in Gaza – has been devastated, businesses
have been bankrupted and 75,000 workers out of 110,000
are now without a job(8). At present, 95% of Gaza's
industrial operations are suspended because they cannot
access inputs for production nor can they export what
they produce (9). In June 2005, there were 3,900
factories in Gaza employing 35,000 people (10). Six
months later there were just 195 left employing only
1,750 people. The construction industry is paralysed
with tens of thousands of labourers out of work (11).
The agriculture sector has also been badly hit and
nearly 40,000 workers who depend on cash crops now
have no income (12). The lack of employment in Gaza
has been compounded by Israel ending its reliance on
cheap labour from Gaza. In September 2000, some
24,000 Palestinians crossed out of Gaza every day to
work in Israel (13). Today that figure is zero.
Basic Services
The blockade is destroying public service
infrastructure in Gaza. The Israeli government
prevents the repair and maintenance of the
electricity and water service infrastructure in Gaza
by prohibiting the import of spare parts. The impact
of this is amplified by Israel's parallel punitive
restrictions on fuel and electricity to Gaza. Hospitals
cannot generate electricity to keep lifesaving equipment
working or to generate oxygen, while 40-50 million
tons of sewage continues to pour into the sea daily (14).
In September 2007, an UNRWA survey in the Gaza
Strip revealed that there was a nearly 80% failure
rate in schools grades four to nine, with up to 90%
failure rates in Mathematics (15). In January 2008,
UNICEF reported that schools in Gaza had been
cancelling classes that are high on energy consumption,
such as IT, science labs and extra curricular activities (16).
Basic Medical Supplies
and Access to Treatment
As a result of fuel and electricity restrictions, hospitals
are currently experiencing power cuts lasting for
8-12 hours a day. There is currently a 60- 70 percent
shortage reported in the diesel required for hospital
power generators.
According to the World Health Organisation, the
proportion of patients given permits to exit Gaza
for medical care decreased from 89.3% in January
2007 to 64.3% in December 2007, an unprecedented
low. It is important to note that even those patients
who are granted permits to exit Gaza are often denied
access at the crossing itself. Twenty-seven such cases
were reported in the month of October alone. WHO
has been monitoring the access of patients to specialized
health services not available within the Gaza Strip.
One main indicator monitored since
October 2007 is the death of patients due to lack
of access to referral services. During the period
October-December 2007, WHO has confirmed the
deaths of 20 patients, including 5 children.
A New Policy for Gaza
The blockade has effectively dismantled the economy
and impoverished the population of Gaza. Israel's
policy affects the civilian population of Gaza
indiscriminately and constitutes a collective
punishment against ordinary men, women and
children. The measures taken are illegal under
international humanitarian law.
Israel has the right and duty to defend itself against
indiscriminate rocket attacks against its civilian
population, but the current policy fails to provide
Israel with increased security and has led to increasing
polarisation. As the head of UNRWA has pointed out,
'Hungry, unhealthy, angry communities do not make
good partners for peace.'
International efforts should be directed towards
securing a swift end to the blockade of Gaza. Israel's
current policy of isolation and refusal to engage with all
elements of the Palestinian leadership only closes doors
to negotiations while reinforcing the political and
humanitarian crisis.
There is an urgent need for Palestinian dialogue and
reconciliation in order to create and sustain a credible
and effective peace process with Israel. The international
community must provide the political support to facilitate
such an undertaking. To date, failure to address the
situation in Gaza has harmed both Palestinians and
Israelis and has been detrimental to the broader
peace process itself.
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