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  Gaza Strip  
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  Introduction
  Geography
  People
  Government
  Economy
  Communications
  Transportation
  Military
  Transnational Issues

In general, information available as of 1 January 2003
was used in the preparation of The World Factbook 2003.


This page was last updated on 1 August, 2003


Map of Gaza Strip

Legend: Definition Definition Field Listing Field Listing Rank Order Rank Order
   Introduction    Gaza Strip
Background:
Definition Field Listing
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, which includes the Palestinian Legislative Council elected in January 1996, 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 had begun in September 1999 after a three-year hiatus, but have been derailed by a second intifadah that broke out in September 2000. The resulting widespread violence in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Israel's military response, and instability within the Palestinian Authority continue to undermine progress toward a permanent agreement.
   Geography    Gaza Strip
Location:
Definition Field Listing
Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Israel
Geographic coordinates:
Definition Field Listing
31 25 N, 34 20 E
Map references:
Definition Field Listing
Middle East
Area:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total: 360 sq km
water: 0 sq km
land: 360 sq km
Area - comparative:
Definition Field Listing
slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries:
Definition Field Listing
total: 62 km
border countries: Egypt 11 km, Israel 51 km
Coastline:
Definition Field Listing
40 km
Maritime claims:
Definition Field Listing
Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent status to be determined through further negotiation
Climate:
Definition Field Listing
temperate, mild winters, dry and warm to hot summers
Terrain:
Definition Field Listing
flat to rolling, sand- and dune-covered coastal plain
Elevation extremes:
Definition Field Listing
lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m
highest point: Abu 'Awdah (Joz Abu 'Auda) 105 m
Natural resources:
Definition Field Listing
arable land, natural gas
Land use:
Definition Field Listing
arable land: 26.32%
permanent crops: 39.47%
other: 34.21% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land:
Definition Field Listing
120 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards:
Definition Field Listing
droughts
Environment - current issues:
Definition Field Listing
desertification; salination of fresh water; sewage treatment; water-borne disease; soil degradation; depletion and contamination of underground water resources
Geography - note:
Definition Field Listing
there are 25 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the Gaza Strip (February 2002 est.)
   People    Gaza Strip
Population:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
1,274,868 (July 2002 est.)
note: in addition, there are more than 5,000 Israeli settlers in the Gaza Strip (July 2003 est.)
Age structure:
Definition Field Listing
0-14 years: 49.4% (male 322,658; female 307,026)
15-64 years: 47.9% (male 310,910; female 299,724)
65 years and over: 2.7% (male 14,645; female 19,905) (2003 est.)
Median age:
Definition Field Listing
total: 15.3 years
male: 15.1 years
female: 15.5 years (2002)
Population growth rate:
Definition Field Listing
3.89% (2003 est.)
Birth rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
41.23 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Death rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
4.03 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Net migration rate:
Definition Field Listing
1.66 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Sex ratio:
Definition Field Listing
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: 0.74 male(s)/female
total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total: 24.15 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 22.87 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
male: 25.37 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total population: 71.4 years
male: 70.13 years
female: 72.73 years (2003 est.)
Total fertility rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
6.17 children born/woman (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
NA%
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
NA
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
NA
Nationality:
Definition Field Listing
noun: NA
adjective: NA
Ethnic groups:
Definition Field Listing
Palestinian Arab and other 99.4%, Jewish 0.6%
Religions:
Definition Field Listing
Muslim (predominantly Sunni) 98.7%, Christian 0.7%, Jewish 0.6%
Languages:
Definition Field Listing
Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many Palestinians), English (widely understood)
Literacy:
Definition Field Listing
definition: NA
total population: NA%
male: NA%
female: NA%
   Government    Gaza Strip
Country name:
Definition Field Listing
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Gaza Strip
local long form: none
local short form: Qita Ghazzah
   Economy    Gaza Strip
Economy - overview:
Definition Field Listing
Economic output in the Gaza Strip - under the responsibility of the Palestinian Authority since the Cairo Agreement of May 1994 - declined by about one-third between 1992 and 1996. The downturn was largely the result of Israeli closure policies - the imposition of generalized border closures in response to security incidents in Israel - which disrupted previously established labor and commodity market relationships between Israel and the WBGS (West Bank and Gaza Strip). The most serious negative social effect of this downturn was the emergence of high unemployment; unemployment in the WBGS during the 1980s was generally under 5%; by 1995 it had risen to over 20%. Israel's use of comprehensive closures decreased during the next few years and, in 1998, Israel implemented new policies to reduce the impact of closures and other security procedures on the movement of Palestinian goods and labor. These changes fueled an almost three-year-long economic recovery in the West Bank and Gaza Strip; real GDP grew by 5% in 1998 and 6% in 1999. Recovery was upended in the last quarter of 2000 with the outbreak of violence, triggering tight Israeli closures of Palestinian self-rule areas and a severe disruption of trade and labor movements. In 2001, and even more severely in 2002, Israeli military measures in Palestinian Authority areas resulted in the destruction of capital plant and administrative structure, widespread business closures, and a sharp drop in GDP. Another major loss has been the decline in income earned by Palestinian workers in Israel. International aid of $2 billion in 2001-02 to the Gaza Strip and West Bank have prevented the complete collapse of the economy.
GDP:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
purchasing power parity - $735 million (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
-15% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
purchasing power parity - $600 (2002 est.)
Population below poverty line:
Definition Field Listing
60% (2002 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
Definition Field Listing
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
2.2% (includes West Bank) (2001 est.)
Labor force:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
NA
Labor force - by occupation:
Definition Field Listing
services 66%, industry 21%, agriculture 13% (1996)
Unemployment rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
50% (includes West Bank) (2002 est.)
Budget:
Definition Field Listing
revenues: $930 million
expenditures: $1.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $15 million (includes West Bank) (2000 est.)
Industries:
Definition Field Listing
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
Industrial production growth rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
NA%
Electricity - production:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by Israel
Electricity - consumption:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
NA kWh
Electricity - exports:
Definition Field Listing
0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports:
Definition Field Listing
NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by Israel (2001)
Agriculture - products:
Definition Field Listing
olives, citrus, vegetables; beef, dairy products
Exports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$603 million f.o.b., includes West Bank
Exports - commodities:
Definition Field Listing
citrus, flowers
Exports - partners:
Definition Field Listing
Israel, Egypt, West Bank
Imports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$1.9 billion c.i.f., includes West Bank
Imports - commodities:
Definition Field Listing
food, consumer goods, construction materials
Imports - partners:
Definition Field Listing
Israel, Egypt, West Bank
Debt - external:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$108 million (includes West Bank) (1997 est.)
Economic aid - recipient:
Definition Field Listing
$2 billion (includes West Bank) (2001-02 est.)
Currency:
Definition Field Listing
new Israeli shekel (ILS)
Currency code:
Definition Field Listing
ILS
Exchange rates:
Definition Field Listing
new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.7378 (2002), 4.2057 (2001), 4.0773 (2000), 4.1397 (1999), 3.8001 (1998), 3.4494 (1997)
Fiscal year:
Definition Field Listing
calendar year
   Communications    Gaza Strip
Telephones - main lines in use:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
95,729 (total for Gaza Strip and West Bank) (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
NA
Telephone system:
Definition Field Listing
general assessment: NA
domestic: rudimentary telephone services provided by an open-wire system
international: NA
Radio broadcast stations:
Definition Field Listing
AM 0, FM 0, shortwave 0 (1998)
Television broadcast stations:
Definition Field Listing
2 (operated by the Palestinian Broadcasting Corporation) (1997)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
Definition Field Listing
3 (1999)
Internet users:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
60,000 (includes West Bank) (2001)
   Transportation    Gaza Strip
Railways:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
total: NA km; note - one line, abandoned and in disrepair, little trackage remains (2001 est.)
Highways:
Definition Field Listing
total: NA km
paved: NA km
unpaved: NA km
note: small, poorly developed road network
Waterways:
Definition Field Listing
none
Ports and harbors:
Definition Field Listing
Gaza
Airports:
Definition Field Listing
2 (2001)
note: includes Gaza International Airport (GIA), inaugurated on 24 November 1998 as part of agreements stipulated in the September 1995 Oslo II Accord and the 23 October 1998 Wye River Memorandum; GIA has been largely closed since October 2000 by Israeli orders and its runway was destroyed by the Israeli Defense Forces in December 2001 (2002)
Airports - with paved runways:
Definition Field Listing
total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
Definition Field Listing
total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2002)
   Military    Gaza Strip
Military branches:
Definition Field Listing
in accordance with the peace agreement, the Palestinian Authority is not permitted conventional military forces; there are, however, a Public Security Force and a civil Police Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
$NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
NA%
   Transnational Issues    Gaza Strip
Disputes - international:
Definition Field Listing
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

This page was last updated on 1 August, 2003


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