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Palestinians in Gaza, two-thirds in need of aid
Photo: Reuters
Head of New Family, Irit Rosenblum

More than 60% of Gaza residents live below poverty line

Average wage in Gaza Strip totals NIS 1,680 ($416) a month. Palestinian families spend some 47.2% on food. 63% of Gaza residents and 45% of West Bank residents live on less than NIS 10 ($2.48) a day. Poverty rate in Gaza higher than in Rwanda

The average wage in the Gaza Strip is NIS 1,690 ($419) a month for a full time position (NIS 76 per day) (roughly $8.85), compared to an average wage of NIS 7,920 (roughly $1,964) paid in Israel (NIS 360 (roughly $89) per day, including part time workers).

 

These findings are based on data collected in the Palestinian Authority by the New Family organization dedicated to advancing family rights and the rights of individuals within families. The average monthly wage among Palestinians in the West Bank is NIS 1,720 (roughly $426) a month.

 

New Family's findings also showed that 206,000 Palestinians are unemployed; this figure constitutes 23.6% of  Palestinians from the territories who are part of the workforce (workers and job seekers).

 

According to the study, 63.1% of Gaza residents live below the UN poverty line, which totals an income of $2 per day per capita. This poverty rate is even higher than in Rwanda, where "only" 60% of the population lives beneath the poverty line. 45% of Palestinians in the West Bank live beneath the poverty line.

 

Primary expense: Food

An average Palestinian family comprises 6.4 persons with monthly expenses totaling NIS 3,367 (roughly $835)  in comparison with an Israeli family comprising an average of 3.7 persons with monthly expenses totaling NIS 10,816 (roughly $2,683). Palestinian families spend 47.2% on food products and only 4.8% on medicine and education. An Israeli family, on the other hand, spends 16% on food.

 

About 67% of Palestinian families report that they are in need of humanitarian aid, while only 29.4% have received such aid, primarily in the form of food packages.

 

Throughout 2006 prices in the territories rose by 3.76%. Since the beginning of the second Intifada in 2000 prices in the territories have risen by 24.7%. New Family's findings show that 66.8% of Palestinian households were forced to lower their expenses on basic needs such as food and medicine.

 

"The findings reveal a grim picture of the Palestinian family's situation," says the head of New Family, Irit Rosenblum. "An average Palestinian family cannot live a dignified life. We are sitting on dynamite that is likely to explode at full force."

 


פרסום ראשון: 10.17.07, 11:31
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