The World Bank report on Friday said that Gaza’s unemployment rate was 43 per cent, the highest in the world, adding that 60 per cent of youths were without jobs in the coastal enclave.
The report said the real per capita income in Gaza was estimated to be 31 per cent lower now than 1994.
The World Bank said 80 per cent of Gazans require social assistance, and no fewer than 40 per cent still fall below the poverty line.
“One third of Gaza’s children showed signs of post-traumatic stress disorder, prior to last year’s war between Israel and Hamas, which left more than 2,200 Palestinians dead.
“Also killed were more than 500 children on the Israeli side, 66 soldiers and six civilians’’, it said.
The report said the ongoing blockade and 2014 war have taken a toll on Gaza’s economy and people’s livelihoods; Gaza’s exports had virtually disappeared and the manufacturing sector has shrunk by 60 per cent.
The report said the poor quality of basic public services such as electricity, water and sewerage of Gaza would be discussed at a donor’s conference in Brussels next week.
