ARCHIVE // PS // 1998

Gaza Strip

1998 Edition — disputed

1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
View Intelligence Dossier Back to 1998 CSV Excel Print All Years
Economy
Agricultural products (Agriculture-products) [time series]
olives, citrus, other fruits, vegetables; beef, dairy products
Budget [time series]
revenues: $684 million expenditures: $779 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1996) note: includes West Bank
Exchange rates (Currency) [time series]
1 new Israeli shekel (NIS) = 100 new agorot
Debt - external (Debt-external) [time series]
$NA
Economic aid [time series]
recipient: ODA, $NA
Economic overview (Economy-overview) [time series]
Economic progress in the Gaza Strip has been hampered by tight Israeli security restrictions. In 1991 roughly 40% of Gaza Strip workers were employed across the border by Israeli industrial, construction, and agricultural enterprises, with worker remittances supplementing GDP by roughly 50%. Gaza has depended upon Israel for nearly 90% of its external trade. The Persian Gulf crisis and its aftershocks have dealt blows to Gaza since August 1990. Worker remittances from the Gulf states have dropped, unemployment and popular unrest have increased, and living standards have fallen. The redeployment of Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip in May 1994 has added to the set of adjustment problems. This series of disruptions has meant a sharp decline in employment in Israel since 1991 and a drop in GDP as a whole. An estimated 378,000 persons were in refugee camps in 1996.
Electricity - capacity (Electricity-capacity) [time series]
NA kW note: electricity supplied by Israel
Electricity - consumption per capita (Electricity-consumption per capita) [time series]
NA kWh
Electricity - production (Electricity-production) [time series]
NA kWh note: electricity supplied by Israel
Exchange rates [time series]
new Israeli shekels (NIS) per US$1-3.5340 (December 1997), 3.4494 3.1917 (1996), 3.0113 (1995), 3.0111 (1994), 2.8301 (1993)
Exports [time series]
total value: $630 million (f.o.b., 1997 est.) (includes West Bank) commodities: citrus partners: Israel, Egypt, West Bank
Fiscal year [time series]
calendar year (since 1 January 1992) Communications
Real GDP (purchasing power parity) (GDP) [time series]
purchasing power parity-$1 billion (1996 est.)
GDP - composition, by sector of origin (GDP-composition by sector) [time series]
agriculture: 33% industry: 25% services: 42% (1995 est., includes West Bank)
Real GDP per capita (GDP-per capita) [time series]
purchasing power parity-$1,100 (1996 est.)
Real GDP growth rate (GDP-real growth rate) [time series]
-6.9% (1996 est.)
Imports [time series]
total value: $1.7 billion (c.i.f., 1997 est.) (includes West Bank) commodities: food, consumer goods, construction materials partners: Israel, Egypt, West Bank
Industrial production growth rate [time series]
NA%
Industries [time series]
generally small family businesses that produce textiles, soap, olive-wood carvings, and mother-of-pearl souvenirs; the Israelis have established some small-scale modern industries in an industrial center
Inflation rate (consumer prices) (Inflation rate-consumer price index) [time series]
8.4% (1996 est.)
Labor force [time series]
NA by occupation: services 66%, industry 21%, agriculture 13% (1996) note: excluding Israeli settlers
Broadcast media (Radio broadcast stations) [time series]
AM 0, FM 0, shortwave 0
Radios [time series]
NA; note-95% of Palestinian households have radios (1992 est.)
Telecommunication systems (Telephone system) [time series]
domestic: NA international: NA
Telephones - fixed lines (Telephones) [time series]
NA note: 3.1% of Palestinian households have telephones
Broadcast media (Television broadcast stations) [time series]
1 station operated by the Palestinian Authority
Televisions [time series]
NA; note-59% of Palestinian households have televisions (1992 est.)
Unemployment rate [time series]
28% (1997 est.)
Geography
Area [time series]
total: 360 sq km land: 360 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative (Area-comparative) [time series]
slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC
Climate [time series]
temperate, mild winters, dry and warm to hot summers
Coastline [time series]
40 km
Elevation (Elevation extremes) [time series]
lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m highest point: Abu 'Awdah (Joz Abu 'Auda) 105 m
Environment - current issues (Environment-current issues) [time series]
desertification; salination of fresh water; sewage treatment
International environmental agreements (Environment-international agreements) [time series]
party to: none of the selected agreements signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geographic coordinates [time series]
31 25 N, 34 20 E
Geography - note (Geography-note) [time series]
there are 24 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the Gaza Strip (August 1997 est.)
Irrigated land [time series]
120 sq km (1993 est.)
Land boundaries [time series]
total: 62 km border countries: Egypt 11 km, Israel 51 km
Land use [time series]
arable land: 24% permanent crops: 39% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 11% other: 26% (1993 est.)
Location [time series]
Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Israel
Map references [time series]
Middle East
Maritime claims [time series]
Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement-permanent status to be determined through further negotiation
Natural hazards [time series]
NA
Natural resources [time series]
NEGL
Terrain [time series]
flat to rolling, sand- and dune-covered coastal plain
Government
Country name [time series]
conventional long form: none conventional short form: Gaza Strip local long form: none local short form: Qita Ghazzah
Data code [time series]
GZ
Military
Military and security forces (Military branches) [time series]
NA
Military expenditures - dollar figure (Military expenditures-dollar figure) [time series]
$NA
Military expenditures (Military expenditures-percent of GDP) [time series]
NA%
People
Age structure [time series]
0-14 years: 52% (male 278,551; female 265,009) 15-64 years: 46% (male 241,420; female 238,857) 65 years and over: 2% (male 12,966; female 17,370) (July 1998 est.)
Birth rate [time series]
49.07 births/1,000 population (1998 est.)
Death rate [time series]
4 deaths/1,000 population (1998 est.)
Ethnic groups [time series]
Palestinian Arab and other 99.4%, Jewish 0.6%
Infant mortality rate [time series]
24.45 deaths/1,000 live births (1998 est.)
Languages [time series]
Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many Palestinians), English (widely understood)
Life expectancy at birth [time series]
total population: 72.95 years male: 71.56 years female: 74.4 years (1998 est.)
Literacy [time series]
NA
Nationality [time series]
noun: NA adjective: NA
Net migration rate [time series]
18.97 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1998 est.)
Population [time series]
1,054,173 (July 1998 est.) note: in addition, there are 6,000 Israeli settlers in the Gaza Strip (August 1997 est.)
Population growth rate [time series]
6.4% (1998 est.)
Religions [time series]
Muslim (predominantly Sunni) 98.7%, Christian 0.7%, Jewish 0.6%
Sex ratio [time series]
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female (1998 est.)
Total fertility rate [time series]
7.57 children born/woman (1998 est.)
Transnational Issues
Current issues [time series]
Beset by ethnic and civil strife since independence in 1991, Georgia began to stabilize in 1994. Separatist conflicts in Abkhazia and South Ossetia have been dormant since spring 1994, although political settlements remain elusive. Russian peacekeepers are deployed in both regions and a UN Observer Mission is operating in Abkhazia. As a result of these conflicts, Georgia still has about 250,000 internally displaced people. In 1995, Georgia adopted a new constitution and conducted generally free and fair nationwide presidential and parliamentary elections. In 1996, the government focused its attention to implementing an ambitious economic reform program and professionalizing its parliament. Violence and organized crime were sharply curtailed in 1995 and 1996, but corruption remains rife. In 1997, SHEVARDNADZE succeeded in bringing international attention to the Abkhazia conflict. The UN sponsored two meetings on the subject, but a resolution is still far off. Georgia also took some steps in 1997 to reduce its dependence on Russia, acquiring coastal patrol boats it hopes to use to replace the current Russian border units on the Black Sea coast. The year 1997 also saw a sharpening of rhetoric-especially from parliament-against Russia's continued military presence on Georgian territory.
Disputes - international (Disputes-international) [time series]
West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement-permanent status to be determined through further negotiation GEORGIA Introduction
Transportation
Airports [time series]
2 (1997 est.) note: includes new international airport that was scheduled to open in June 1997, but has been delayed due to political and security disagreements between Palestinian and Israeli negotiators
Airports - with paved runways (Airports-with paved runways) [time series]
total: 1 over 3,047 m: 1 (1997 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways (Airports-with unpaved runways) [time series]
total: 1 under 914 m: 1 (1997 est.)
Roadways (Highways) [time series]
total: NA km paved: NA km unpaved: NA km note: small, poorly developed road network
Ports (Ports and harbors) [time series]
Gaza
Railways [time series]
total: NA km; note-one line, abandoned and in disrepair, little trackage remains