Jerusalem, 27 September 1993
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
GAZA DATA
(Government Press Office)
TERRITORY: 365 square kilometers.
POPULATION:
* About 700,000 residents live in the area.
* Most of the population is urban (over 60%); the rest lives in villages
(12.6%) and in eight refugee camps (26.5%).
* About 480,000 refugees live in the Gaza Strip; half of them live in
the refugee camps, and the other half outside them.
HEALTH:
Six hospitals and 26 government clinics operate in Gaza. Another
hospital for treatment of tuberculosis was closed upon the elimination
of the disease.
EDUCATION:
There are about 220,000 students studying in the Gaza Strip; about half
of them attend government schools, and half attend the UNRWA school and
private schools.
EMPLOYMENT:
* Before the closure, between 30,000-35,000 laborers worked in Israel,
mostly in construction.
* Today, Israeli work permits are held by over 21,500 individuals, most
employed in construction, agriculture and industry. In addition, the
Civil Administration employs about 15,000 workers in the Strip (13,500
in public works and another 1,500 in infrastructure improvement
projects).
* The Civil Administration is the largest employer in the Strip. About
7,000 local residents are employed by the Civil Administration - about
1,900 in health and 3,800 in education.
BUDGET:
* The 1993 Civil Administration budget is divided into the current
budget (NIS 208.6 million) and the development budget (NIS 24.5
million).
* About another NIS 100 million were allocated for development from
various sources, not including funds provided for public works.