Ten-year blockade renders 80% Gaza reliant on foreign aid

According to a study conducted by the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights residents of Gaza are deprived of opportunities towards financial self-sufficiency, with youth unemployment particularly high.

MENA

1 min read

The New Arab

06 January, 2017

Youth unemployment in Gaza is as high as 65 percent [AFP]

Poverty rates in Gaza have risen to a staggering 65 percent following ten years of continuous Israeli blockade, according to the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHS).

Harsh economic conditions brought about by the Israeli blockade have also lead unemployment figures to rise to 47 percent, with youth unemployment levels as high as 65 percent, according to a statement released by the Gaza-based NGO on Thursday.

As a result economic independence for people living in Gaza has been greatly restricted, with around 80 percent of the local population dependent on foreign aid to meet their daily living requirements, according to research conducted by PCHS.

A previous study carried out by the World Bank in September 2016 put unemployment and poverty rates slightly lower at 43 percent and 60 percent respectively.

Israel imposed a blockade on the Gaza strip in 2006 following Hamas' victory in parliamentary elections. The blockade was consequently tightened in June 2007 with Israel citing security concerns.