United Nations Radio

Israeli actions continue to constrain the Palestinian economy, according to this year's report on the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Assistance to the Palestinian People.

portion of wall blockading Gaza

UNCTAD says these actions include the Israeli military operation in Gaza from 27 December 2008 to 18 January 2009, the closure policy in the West Bank, and the continued blockade of Gaza.

The UN agency says although the economy in the Palestinian territory grew by 6.8 in 2008, the real income of Palestinians decreased 30 per cent from what it was 10 years ago.

Mahmoud Elkhafif, UNCTAD Coordinator of the Assistance to the Palestinian People, says there is no serious rehabilitation of the Palestinian economy.

"The only way to basically reconstruct and rehabilitate the Palestinian economy is the complete lifting of the Israeli restrictions on movements on Palestinian people and goods both in the West Bank and the Gaza, in a sense, complete lifting of the blockade in Gaza and complete relaxation of restrictions imposed on the movements in the West Bank."

Mahmoud Elkhafif says another alarming feature of this economy is that 30 per cent of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza are unemployed.

He warns that poverty is continuing to deepen and spread with food insecurity affecting more than 60 per cent of the population of Gaza and a quarter of those who live in the West Bank.

Dianne Penn, United Nations Radio
(duration: 1'36")