Gaza – The World Bank confirmed, on Thursday, that all residents of the Gaza Strip suffer from poverty, with the rate reaching 100 percent, and indicated that inflation exceeded 250 percent, due to the consequences of the ongoing Israeli war on the Strip for about a year.
This came in a report issued by the bank today entitled “Palestinian Economic Modernization,” with the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip about to complete its first year, which caused the displacement of about two million people.
The bank stated that the Palestinian territories witnessed a 35 percent decline in real gross domestic product in the first quarter of 2024, which is “the largest ever.”
He said: “Gaza’s economy shrank by 86 percent during this period, while the West Bank’s economy shrank by 25 percent. Unemployment in the Palestinian territories reached record levels and exceeded 50 percent.”
The bank expected the Palestinian Authority’s financing gap to worsen, “and it is expected to reach $2 billion in 2024 (i.e. three times the gap in 2023), which poses serious risks to the provision of services and may lead to a systemic collapse.”
The cessation of commercial operations in Gaza left families without income, while the prices of basic goods rose significantly, with the inflation rate exceeding 250 percent, according to the report.
He continued: “The educational system collapsed in Gaza, and the health system was greatly damaged, as 80 percent of primary care centers no longer functioned… and the poverty rate reached 100 percent, while it rose in the West Bank from 12 percent to 28 percent.”
He stressed that “the conflict has led to a severe shortage of cash in Gaza, affecting access to humanitarian aid and basic financial services.”
The bank warned of the increasing financial risks of the Palestinian banking sector, due to its high exposure to the public sector, which has reached historic levels (the high share of loans provided by banks to the Palestinian government out of the total loans provided in the market).
Banks have become the most prominent financiers of the Palestinian government during the current and past years, by providing loans either to pay part of the public sector wage bill, or to keep it able to provide services.
Anatolia
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2024-09-29 14:10:08
