Israel’s ongoing war in Gaza has led to an unprecedented decline in the Palestinian enclave’s economic activity, according to a new report issued on Thursday by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
In the report, the UN trade body calculated that Gaza’s GDP plummeted by 81% in the last quarter of 2023, leading to a 22% contraction for the entire year. The economy is “in ruins,” having shrunk by mid-2024 to less than one-sixth of its 2022 level, UNCTAD said.
The publication highlighted that between 80% to 96% of Gaza’s agricultural assets had been decimated as a result of the widespread destruction. “This has crippled the region’s food production capacity and worsened already high levels of food insecurity,” it said.
The destruction has also hit the private sector hard, a key driver of Gaza’s economy. According to the report, 82% of businesses have been damaged or destroyed.
Two-thirds of the jobs in Gaza, numbering about 201,000, had already been lost by January 2024, UNCTAD wrote, noting that the massive jobs losses have “further worsened the already critical economic and humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip.”
The report pointed out that before the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, 80% of Gaza’s population depended on international assistance.
“Currently, poverty affects nearly the entire population of Gaza and is rising rapidly in the West Bank,” UNCTAD said, calling for immediate international intervention to stabilize the economy and support peace efforts.
Israel declared war on Hamas after the Gaza-based Palestinian group launched a raid in October 2023 that was blamed for the deaths of 1,200 Israelis. Since then, upwards of 41,000 Palestinians have been killed and another 95,000 wounded in the Israeli military operation in Gaza, according to the enclave’s Health Ministry.
Hamas said on Wednesday it was ready for an “immediate” ceasefire with Israel in Gaza based on a previous US proposal without new conditions from any party. The “comprehensive” plan put forward by US President Joe Biden in June provided for a three-phase ceasefire in return for the release of Israeli hostages.