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The Gazan economy is on the "verge of collapse" because of the effects of war, blockade and poor governance, with the unemployment rate close to becoming the highest in the world, a new World Bank report has warned.
The report, published before the meeting of the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee (AHLC) which organises donor support to the Palestinian territory, says that "blockades, war and governance have strangled" the enclave and concludes that the "status quo in Gaza is unsustainable".
To reverse the "worrisome slowdown in economic growth" and "avoid a dangerous fiscal crisis", the global financial body calls on Israel, the Palestinian Authority and international donors to take "actions" and implement "reforms".
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The report recommends that only "a unified Palestinian government in both the West Bank and Gaza" could rebuild the economy. It calls for a "lifting of the blockade on the movement of goods and people to allow Gaza's tradable sectors to recover."
The territory has been ruled by Islamist militant group Hamas since 2006 and has been placed under an Israeli blockade since 2007. The report claims that if were not for such restrictions and the conflicts with Israel in 2009, 2012 and 2014, the GDP of Gaza would be four times higher.
"The impact of the blockade imposed in 2007 was particularly devastating, with GDP losses caused by the blockade estimated at above 50% and large welfare losses," the report says of the Israeli and Egyptian blockades.
Figures released in the report reveal that 44% of Gaza's population is unemployed making it "probably the highest in the world"; 39% living in poverty despite almost four in every five Gazans given "some aid"; and the highest youth unemployment in the region - currently standing at approximately 60%.
"Gaza's unemployment and poverty figures are very troubling and the economic outlook is worrying," Steen Lau Jorgensen, the World Bank's country director for Gaza and the West Bank said.
"The current market in Gaza is not able to offer jobs, leaving a large population in despair particularly the youth," he added. "The ongoing blockade and the 2014 war have taken a toll on Gaza's economy and people's livelihoods."
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