Following Israeli aggression, 62% of population of Gaza is food insecure, says report

A report by the United Nations, the European Union and the World Bank estimated that the damage caused in the 11-day Israeli bombardment of Gaza Strip was between $290m and $380m, while the recovery needs are projected at between $345m and $485m.

The Gaza Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment (RDNA) report published on Tuesday found that following the aggression, 62 percent of the population of Gaza is food insecure, adding that unemployment was already at 48 percent and poverty rates above 50 percent before the escalation.

The report said that the aggression killed at least 260 Palestinians, including 66 children, and caused widespread damage to infrastructure and residential areas.

The RDNA report found that most of the damage in Gaza from Israel’s bombardment in May was caused to social sectors such as housing, health, education, and social protection and jobs, at an estimate of $180m.

“The housing sector alone represents almost 93 percent of the total damages to the social sectors,” the report said.

The report recommended that the international community increase its support for cash assistance programmes for the Palestinians in Gaza, ensure the delivery of humanitarian aid, and transfer critical medical cases and patients outside of Gaza.

“In the short-term, socioeconomic recovery in Gaza will be determined by two factors: the level of available financing, including from donors, for reconstruction activities; and the extent of the restrictions on movement and access of people and goods entering Gaza, particularly the supply of essential reconstruction materials,” the report said.

The report also called on the occupation state of ‘Israel’ to provide access to some vital materials for reconstruction that ‘Israel’ has dubbed as “dual use materials” such as cement, chemicals, and pipes.

It also called on ‘Israel’ to establish a financing mechanism, and to allow sufficient quantities of fuel to enter Gaza.

The report estimated that the immediate and short-term recovery and reconstruction needs (during the first 24 months) are estimated between US$ 345 – 485 million, with needs estimated between US$345 to US$485 million, of which US$125 to 195 million in the immediate term (from now until the end of 2021), and US$ 220 to 290 million in the short term (6 to 24 months).

The priorities focus on ensuring a return to some normalcy by rapidly providing relief, repairing priority damages to infrastructure, and reinstating essential services disrupted by the conflict, to be restored at least to pre-conflict levels, if not further, it said.

The report also found that critical recovery needs include cash assistance to around 45,000 individuals for food and non-food assistance, providing an additional 20,000 full-time jobs for 12 months, and prioritizing housing needs for over 4,000 destroyed or partially damaged that had about 7,000 children in the families who lost their homes.

“Early interventions are needed to improve food production in agri-food and fishery and rehabilitate physical assets. In addition, financial support is needed to reconstruct the badly damaged micro and small enterprises that provide services, goods, and jobs to the communities, with a focus on sustainable energy- and water-efficient techniques,” the report added.

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