ARCHIVE // PS // 2014

Gaza Strip

2014 Edition — disputed

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Communications
Broadcast media [time series]
1 TV station and about 10 radio stations (2008)
Internet country code [time series]
.ps; note - same as West Bank
Internet users [time series]
1.379 million (includes West Bank) (2009) country comparison to the world: 87
Telecommunication systems (Telephone system) [time series]
general assessment: Gaza continues to repair the damage to its telecommunications infrastructure caused by fighting in 2009 domestic: Israeli company BEZEK and the Palestinian company PALTEL are responsible for fixed-line services; the Palestinian JAWWAL company provides cellular services international: country code - 970 (2009)
Telephones - fixed lines (Telephones - main lines in use) [time series]
406,000 (includes West Bank) (2012) country comparison to the world: 105
Telephones - mobile cellular [time series]
3.041 million (includes West Bank) (2012) country comparison to the world: 131
Economy
Agricultural products (Agriculture - products) [time series]
olives, fruit, vegetables, flowers; beef, dairy products
Budget [time series]
see entry for West Bank
Commercial bank prime lending rate [time series]
see entry for West Bank
Current account balance [time series]
(2011 est.)
Debt - external [time series]
see entry for West Bank
Economic overview (Economy - overview) [time series]
Israeli security controls imposed since the end of the second intifada have degraded economic conditions in the Gaza Strip, the smaller of the two areas comprising the Palestinian territories. Israeli-imposed border closures, which became more restrictive after HAMAS seized control of the territory in June 2007, have resulted in high unemployment, elevated poverty rates, and a sharp contraction of the private sector that had relied primarily on export markets. Gazans increasingly turned to tunnels that ran under the Egyptian border to bring in fuel, construction materials, and consumer goods. In July 2013, Egyptian authorities began a serious crackdown on the tunnels, causing shortages in Gaza. The population depends on government spending - by both the Palestinian Authority and HAMAS's de facto government - and humanitarian assistance. Changes to Israeli restrictions on imports in 2010 resulted in a rebound in some economic activity, but regular exports from Gaza still are not permitted. Standard-of-living measures remain below levels seen in the mid-1990s.
Exchange rates [time series]
new Israeli shekels (ILS) per US dollar - 3.621 (2012 est.) 3.5781 (2012 est.) 3.739 (2010 est.) 3.9323 (2009) 3.56 (2008)
Exports [time series]
(2011 est.)
Exports - commodities [time series]
strawberries, carnations, vegetables (small and irregular shipments, as permitted to transit the Israeli-controlled Kerem Shalom crossing)
Fiscal year [time series]
calendar year
Real GDP (purchasing power parity) (GDP (purchasing power parity)) [time series]
see entry for West Bank
GDP - composition, by end use [time series]
household consumption: 99.5% government consumption: 29.5% investment in fixed capital: 18% investment in inventories: 0% exports of goods and services: 14.9% imports of goods and services: -62% (2013 est.)
GDP - composition, by sector of origin [time series]
see entry for West Bank
Real GDP per capita (GDP - per capita (PPP)) [time series]
see entry for West Bank
Real GDP growth rate (GDP - real growth rate) [time series]
see entry for West Bank
Imports [time series]
see entry for West Bank
Imports - commodities [time series]
food, consumer goods note: Israel permits basic commercial imports through the Kerem Shalom crossing, but many "dual use" goods, such as construction materials and electronics, are smuggled through tunnels beneath Gaza's border with Egypt
Industries [time series]
textiles, food processing, furniture
Inflation rate (consumer prices) [time series]
1.7% (2013 est.) country comparison to the world: 53 2.8% (2012 est.) note: includes West Bank
Labor force [time series]
348,200 (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 161
Labor force - by occupation [time series]
agriculture: 5.1% industry: 15.6% services: 79.3% (2010 est.)
Population below poverty line [time series]
38% (2010 est.)
Stock of broad money [time series]
$2.1 billion (31 December 2013 est.) country comparison to the world: 148 $1.814 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
Stock of domestic credit [time series]
$1.248 billion (31 December 2013 est.) country comparison to the world: 148 $1.042 billion (31 December 2012 est.)
Unemployment rate [time series]
22.5% (2013 est.) country comparison to the world: 170 23% (2012 est.)
Energy
Crude oil - proved reserves [time series]
0 bbl (1 January 2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 142
Electricity - consumption [time series]
202,000 kWh (2009) country comparison to the world: 218
Electricity - exports [time series]
0 kWh (2011 est.) country comparison to the world: 147
Electricity - imports [time series]
193,000 kWh (2011 est.) country comparison to the world: 109
Electricity - production [time series]
51,000 kWh (2011 est.) country comparison to the world: 219
Geography
Area [time series]
total: 360 sq km country comparison to the world: 206 land: 360 sq km water: 0 sq km
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 'Awdah) 105 m
Environment - current issues [time series]
desertification; salination of fresh water; sewage treatment; water-borne disease; soil degradation; depletion and contamination of underground water resources
Geographic coordinates [time series]
31 25 N, 34 20 E
Geography - note [time series]
strategic strip of land along Mideast-North African trade routes has experienced an incredibly turbulent history; the town of Gaza itself has been besieged countless times in its history
Irrigated land [time series]
240 sq km; note - includes West Bank (2003)
Land boundaries [time series]
total: 72 km border countries: Egypt 13 km, Israel 59 km
Land use [time series]
arable land: 7.39% permanent crops: 10.96% other: 81.64% (2011)
Location [time series]
Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Israel
Map references [time series]
Middle East
Maritime claims [time series]
see entry for Israel note: effective 3 January 2009 the Gaza maritime area is closed to all maritime traffic and is under blockade imposed by Israeli Navy until further notice
Natural hazards [time series]
droughts
Natural resources [time series]
arable land, natural gas
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
Introduction
Background [time series]
Inhabited since at least the 15th century B.C., Gaza has been dominated by many different peoples and empires throughout its history; it was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire in the early 16th century. Gaza fell to British forces during World War I, becoming a part of the British Mandate of Palestine. Following the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, Egypt administered the newly formed Gaza Strip; it was captured by Israel in the Six-Day War in 1967. Under a series of agreements signed between 1994 and 1999, Israel transferred to the Palestinian Authority (PA) security and civilian responsibility for many Palestinian-populated areas of the Gaza Strip as well as the West Bank. Negotiations to determine the permanent status of the West Bank and Gaza Strip stalled after the outbreak of an intifada in mid- 2000. In early 2003, the "Quartet" of the US, EU, UN, and Russia, presented a roadmap to a final peace settlement by 2005, calling for two states - Israel and a democratic Palestine. Following Palestinian leader Yasir ARAFAT's death in late 2004 and the subsequent election of Mahmud ABBAS (head of the Fatah political party) as the PA president, Israel and the PA agreed to move the peace process forward. Israel in late 2005 unilaterally withdrew all of its settlers and soldiers and dismantled its military facilities in the Gaza Strip, but continues to control maritime, airspace, and other access. In early 2006, the Islamic Resistance Movement, HAMAS, won the Palestinian Legislative Council election and took control of the PA government. Attempts to form a unity government between Fatah and HAMAS failed, and violent clashes between Fatah and HAMAS supporters ensued, culminating in HAMAS's violent seizure of all military and governmental institutions in the Gaza Strip in June 2007. Fatah and HAMAS in early 2011 agreed to reunify the Gaza Strip and West Bank, but the factions have struggled to implement details on governance and security. Brief periods of increased violence between Israel and Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip in 2007-08 and again in 2012, both led to Egyptian-brokered truces. The status quo remains with HAMAS in control of the Gaza Strip and the PA governing the West Bank.
Military
Manpower available for military service [time series]
males age 16-49: 385,961 (2010 est.)
Manpower fit for military service [time series]
males age 16-49: 335,820 females age 16-49: 319,847 (2010 est.)
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually [time series]
male: 18,805 female: 17,903 (2010 est.)
Military and security forces (Military branches) [time series]
Hamas does not have a conventional military in the Gaza Strip, but maintains security forces in addition to its military wing, the 'Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades; the military wing reports to the external Hamas Political Bureau leadership, which has been in exile in Cairo and Doha since closing its Damascus headquarters in late 2011 (2013)
People and Society
Age structure [time series]
0-14 years: 43.2% (male 402,848/female 381,155) 15-24 years: 20.6% (male 191,710/female 182,405) 25-54 years: 30.1% (male 280,551/female 266,756) 55-64 years: 3.5% (male 31,711/female 31,515) 65 years and over: 2.6% (male 19,617/female 28,111) (2014 est.)
Birth rate [time series]
32.2 births/1,000 population (2014 est.) country comparison to the world: 35
Death rate [time series]
3.09 deaths/1,000 population (2014 est.) country comparison to the world: 220
Dependency ratios [time series]
total dependency ratio: 74.1 % youth dependency ratio: 68.8 % elderly dependency ratio: 5.3 % potential support ratio: 19 note: data represents the Palestinian Territories (2014 est.)
Drinking water source [time series]
improved: urban: 81.6% of population rural: 82.3% of population total: 81.8% of population unimproved: urban: 18.4% of population rural: 17.7% of population total: 18.2% of population note: includes Gaza and the West Bank (2012 est.)
Ethnic groups [time series]
Palestinian Arab
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate [time series]
NA
HIV/AIDS - deaths [time series]
NA
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS [time series]
NA
Infant mortality rate [time series]
total: 15.46 deaths/1,000 live births country comparison to the world: 105 male: 16.51 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.35 deaths/1,000 live births (2014 est.)
Languages [time series]
Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by many Palestinians), English (widely understood)
Life expectancy at birth [time series]
total population: 74.64 years country comparison to the world: 109 male: 72.9 years female: 76.48 years (2014 est.)
Literacy [time series]
definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 95.3% male: 97.9% female: 92.6% note: estimates are for the Palestinian Territories (2011 est.)
Maternal mortality ratio (Maternal mortality rate) [time series]
64 deaths/100,000 live births (2010) country comparison to the world: 94
Median age [time series]
total: 18.2 years male: 18 years female: 18.4 years (2014 est.)
Mother's mean age at first birth [time series]
19 note: median age at first birth among women 25-29 (2004 est.)
Nationality [time series]
noun: NA adjective: NA
Net migration rate [time series]
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2014 est.) country comparison to the world: 108
Population [time series]
1,816,379 (July 2014 est.) country comparison to the world: 152
Population growth rate [time series]
2.91% (2014 est.) country comparison to the world: 13
Religions [time series]
Muslim 98.0 - 99.0% (predominantly Sunni), Christian <1.0%, other, unaffiliated, unspecified <1.0% note: dismantlement of Israeli settlements was completed in September 2005; Gaza has had no Jewish population since then (2012 est.)
Sanitation facility access [time series]
improved: urban: 94.8% of population rural: 92.8% of population total: 94.3% of population unimproved: urban: 5.2% of population rural: 7.2% of population total: 5.7% of population note: includes Gaza and the West Bank (2012 est.)
Sex ratio [time series]
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female 0-14 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-24 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 25-54 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 55-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2014 est.)
Total fertility rate [time series]
4.24 children born/woman (2014 est.) country comparison to the world: 34
Youth unemployment rate (ages 15-24) (Unemployment, youth ages 15-24) [time series]
total: 38.8% country comparison to the world: 16 male: 34.5% female: 62.2% note: includes West Bank (2012)
Urbanization [time series]
urban population: 74.3% of total population (2011) rate of urbanization: 3.1% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
Transnational Issues
Disputes - international [time series]
the status of the Gaza Strip is a final status issue to be resolved through negotiations; Israel removed settlers and military personnel from Gaza Strip in August 2005
Refugees and internally displaced persons [time series]
refugees (country of origin): 1,240,082 (Palestinian refugees (UNRWA)) (2014) IDPs: at least 146,000 (persons displaced within both the Gaza strip and the West Bank, some fled as long ago as 1967 but confirmed cumulative figures do not go back beyond 2006) (2013)
Transportation
Airports [time series]
1 (2013) country comparison to the world: 218
Airports - with paved runways [time series]
total: 1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2013)
Heliports [time series]
1 (2013)
Ports (Ports and terminals) [time series]
major seaport(s): Gaza
Roadways [time series]
see entry for West Bank