Joblessness Hangs at 45% in Blockaded Gaza
In findings that can hardly be expected to generate Palestinian good will for Israel, a five-year Israeli blockade on Gazan exports has contributed heavily to the joblessness of nearly half the population and a sharp decline in real wages, according to a U.N. report.In findings that can hardly be expected to generate Palestinian goodwill for Israel, a five-year Israeli blockade on Gazan exports has contributed heavily to the joblessness of nearly half the population and a sharp decline in real wages, according to a U.N. report.
In 2009, the city of Gaza had a population of 450,000. Private businesses have lost the most jobs, researchers say, while the public sector run by Hamas — the leading party which resolutely refuses to recognize Israel — has actually added jobs. –ARK
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Gaza’s unemployment rate was among the world’s highest, at 45.2% in late 2010, the UN has found, as Israel’s blockade of the territory enters its fifth year.
Real wages meanwhile fell by more than a third, the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) said.
Its report says that private businesses have been hardest hit by the continuing ban on virtually all exports.
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