Gaza Strip

Internet country code

.ps

Internet users

243,000 (includes West Bank) (2005)

Radio broadcast stations

AM 0, FM 8, shortwave 0 (2005)

Telephone system

general assessment: NA domestic: Israeli company BEZEK and the Palestinian company PALTEL are responsible for fixed line services in the Gaza Strip; the Palestinian JAWAL company provides cellular services international: country code - 970

Telephones - main lines in use

349,000 (includes West Bank) (2005)

Telephones - mobile cellular

1.095 million (includes West Bank) (2005)

Television broadcast stations

1 (2005)

Agriculture - products

olives, citrus, vegetables; beef, dairy products

Budget

revenues: $964 million expenditures: $1.34 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA; note - these budget data include West Bank (2004)

Currency (code)

new Israeli shekel (ILS)

Debt - external

$0; note - includes West Bank (2002)

Economic aid - recipient

$2 billion; note - includes West Bank (2004 est.)

Economy - overview

High population density, limited land access, and strict internal and external controls have kept economic conditions in the Gaza Strip - the smaller of the two areas under the Palestinian Authority (PA)- even more degraded than in the West Bank. The beginning of the second intifadah in September 2000 sparked an economic downturn, largely the result of Israeli closure policies; these policies, which were imposed in response to security interests in Israel, disrupted labor and commodity relationships with the Gaza Strip. In 2001, and even more severely in 2003, Israeli military measures in PA areas resulted in the destruction of much capital plant, the disruption of administrative structure, and widespread business closures. Including the West Bank, the UN estimates that more than 100,000 Palestinians out of the 125,000 who used to work in Israel or in joint industrial zones have lost their jobs. Half the labor force is unemployed. Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip in September 2005 offers some medium-term opportunities for economic growth, especially given the removal of restrictions on internal movement. In addition, recent agreements and continuing negotiations on the administration of Gaza's border crossings increase the prospects for trade.

Electricity - consumption

NA kWh

Electricity - exports

0 kWh (2001)

Electricity - imports

NA kWh; note - some electricity supplied by an Israeli utility (2005)

Electricity - production

NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by the Gaza Strip power plant and by an Israeli utility

Exchange rates

new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.4877 (2005), 4.482 (2004), 4.5541 (2003), 4.7378 (2002), 4.2057 (2001)

Exports

$270 million f.o.b.; note - includes West Bank (2003)

Exports - commodities

citrus, flowers, textiles

Exports - partners

Israel, Egypt, West Bank (2004)

Fiscal year

calendar year

GDP (official exchange rate)

NA

GDP (purchasing power parity)

$768 million (2003 est.)

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture: 3% industry: 28.3% services: 68.7% (includes West Bank) (2002 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP)

$600 (2003 est.)

GDP - real growth rate

4.5% (2003 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share

lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%

Imports

$1.952 billion c.i.f.; note - includes West Bank (2003)

Imports - commodities

food, consumer goods, construction materials

Imports - partners

Israel, Egypt, West Bank (2004)

Industrial production growth rate

NA%

Industries

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, but operations ceased prior to Israel's evacuation of Gaza Strip settlements

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

7% (includes West Bank) (2003)

Labor force

278,000 (April-June 2005)

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture: 11.9% industry: 18% services: 70.1% (2nd qtr. 2005)

Population below poverty line

81% (2004 est.)

Unemployment rate

31% (includes West Bank) (January-September 2005 avg.)

Area

total: 360 sq km land: 360 sq km water: 0 sq km

Area - comparative

slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC

Climate

temperate, mild winters, dry and warm to hot summers

Coastline

40 km

Elevation extremes

lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m highest point: Abu 'Awdah (Joz Abu 'Auda) 105 m

Environment - current issues

desertification; salination of fresh water; sewage treatment; water-borne disease; soil degradation; depletion and contamination of underground water resources

Geographic coordinates

31 25 N, 34 20 E

Geography - note

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

150 sq km; note - includes West Bank (2003)

Land boundaries

total: 62 km border countries: Egypt 11 km, Israel 51 km

Land use

arable land: 29% permanent crops: 21% other: 50% (2002)

Location

Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Israel

Map references

Middle East

Maritime claims

Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent status to be determined through further negotiation

Natural hazards

droughts

Natural resources

arable land, natural gas

Terrain

flat to rolling, sand- and dune-covered coastal plain

Country name

conventional long form: none conventional short form: Gaza Strip local long form: none local short form: Qita Ghazzah

Background

The Israel-PLO Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements (the DOP), signed in Washington on 13 September 1993, provided for a transitional period not exceeding five years of Palestinian interim self-government in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Under the DOP, Israel agreed to transfer certain powers and responsibilities to the Palestinian Authority (PA) as part of the interim self-governing arrangements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. A transfer of powers and responsibilities for the Gaza Strip and Jericho took place pursuant to the Israel-PLO 4 May 1994 Cairo Agreement on the Gaza Strip and the Jericho Area and in additional areas of the West Bank pursuant to the Israel-PLO 28 September 1995 Interim Agreement, the Israel-PLO 15 January 1997 Protocol Concerning Redeployment in Hebron, the Israel-PLO 23 October 1998 Wye River Memorandum, and the 4 September 1999 Sharm el-Sheikh Agreement. The DOP provides that Israel will retain responsibility during the transitional period for external and internal security and for public order of settlements and Israeli citizens. Direct negotiations to determine the permanent status of Gaza and West Bank began in September 1999 after a three-year hiatus, but were derailed by a second intifadah that broke out in September 2000. In April 2003 the Quartet (US, EU, UN, and Russia) presented a roadmap to a final settlement of the conflict by 2005 based on reciprocal steps by the two parties leading to two states, Israel and a democratic Palestine. The proposed date for a permanent status agreement has been postponed indefinitely due to violence and accusations that both sides have not followed through on their commitments. Longtime Palestinian leader Yasir ARAFAT died in November 2004 and Mahmud ABBAS was elected PA president in January 2005, bringing hope of a turning point in the conflict. In February 2005 Israel and the PA agreed to the Sharm el-Sheikh Commitments, focused on security issues, in an effort to move the peace process forward. Progress has been slow because of different interpretations of the verbal agreement by the two sides. In September 2005, Israel withdrew all its settlers and soldiers and dismantled its military facilities in the Gaza Strip and four northern West Bank settlements. Nonetheless, Israel controls maritime, airspace, and most access to the Gaza Strip. An agreement signed by the PA and Israel in November 2005 authorized the reopening of the Rafah border crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt under joint PA and Egyptian control, with monitoring provided by the EU.

Manpower available for military service

males age 18-49: 260,855 (2005 est.)

Manpower fit for military service

males age 18-49: 221,530 (2005 est.)

Manpower reaching military service age annually

males age 18-49: 15,196 (2005 est.)

Military branches

in accordance with the peace agreement, the Palestinian Authority is not permitted conventional military forces; there are, however, public security forces (2002)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP

NA

Age structure

0-14 years: 48.1% (male 351,642/female 335,060) 15-64 years: 49.4% (male 360,147/female 345,318) 65 years and over: 2.6% (male 15,231/female 21,359) (2006 est.)

Birth rate

39.45 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate

3.8 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Ethnic groups

Palestinian Arab and other 99.4%, Jewish 0.6%

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

NA

HIV/AIDS - deaths

NA

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

NA

Infant mortality rate

total: 22.4 deaths/1,000 live births male: 23.48 deaths/1,000 live births female: 21.27 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

Languages

Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by many Palestinians), English (widely understood)

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 71.97 years male: 70.67 years female: 73.34 years (2006 est.)

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 91.9% male: 96.3% female: 87.4% (2003 est.)

Median age

total: 15.8 years male: 15.7 years female: 16 years (2006 est.)

Nationality

noun: NA adjective: NA

Net migration rate

1.48 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Population

1,428,757 (July 2006 est.)

Population growth rate

3.71% (2006 est.)

Religions

Muslim (predominantly Sunni) 98.7%, Christian 0.7%, Jewish 0.6%

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate

5.78 children born/woman (2006 est.)

Disputes - international

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; Israel removed settlers and military personnel from the Gaza Strip in August 2005

Refugees and internally displaced persons

refugees (country of origin): 986,034 (Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA)) (2005)

Airports

2 note: includes Gaza International Airport closed since its runway was destroyed by the Israeli Defense Forces in December 2001 (2006)

Airports - with paved runways

total: 1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2006)

Airports - with unpaved runways

total: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2006)

Heliports

1 (2006)

Ports and terminals

Gaza

Roadways

note: see entry for West Bank