- MAJOR CHANGES SINCES PREVIOUS VERSION OF THE HIP
According to the recent WASH cluster assessments, rainfall at the end of May 2011 registered around 72% of the historical average at the end of the rainy season with regional variance in precipitation figures. The situation is particularly critical in some areas of the West Bank where DG ECHO (Directorate General for humanitarian aid and Civil Protection) already intervening.
The lack of rainfall has prevented farmers and herders from planting crops in most of the West Bank. This year, the planted land represents only 40% of what is normally planted.
In addition to that, most of the planted crops have not grown sufficiently (i.e. in south Hebron 0% of the sowed land reached the grain maturity). In addition to the rainfall deficit, the restrictive permit regime leaves little to no room for mitigation measures to increase the resilience of water scarce communities.
To respond to the aggravating existing needs it has been decided to allocate an additional EUR 4,000,000 (EUR 1,500,000 from the humanitarian aid budget line and EUR 2,500,000 from the food assistance budget line). This will bring the total to EUR 46,000,000 to the present HIP.
The implementation of this additional funding will be mainly done through experienced and active actors in the area, preferably through modification of ongoing operations.
- CONTEXT
At the end of 20091, the population of the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt) was estimated at 4 million, 62.1% lived in the West Bank ("WB", including 9.5% in Jerusalem Governorate) and 37.9% in Gaza. The refugee population stood at 1,885,1882,
i.e. 47% of the total population (30.8% in the WB, 69.2% in Gaza).
The population in oPt continues to live in severe hardship and social distress. A protracted socio-economic crisis, characterised by draconian restrictions on movement and the recurrent destruction of physical assets, has led to major increases in poverty and unemployment. From the start of the second Intifada in September 2000 until the end of December 2009, the number of Palestinians below the poverty line has more than doubled. The situation has been exacerbated by the internal Palestinian conflict. These internal divisions have led to disruptions of basic services, including health, water and sanitation as well as community services for the most vulnerable.
The Israeli-imposed blockade on Gaza has crippled the private sector there, driving unprecedented numbers of Palestinians into poverty and unemployment. It continues to prevent urgently needed reconstruction work from progressing as the territory struggles to recover from the Israeli military offensive “Cast Lead” that ended in January 2009.
Since then, the main disruptions to the relative quiet come from sporadic rocket fires from the Gaza Strip into Israel, limited retaliatory Israeli military action, intermittent clashes between Fatah and Hamas supporters and between Hamas and the growing number of militants from Jihadi and Salafi groups.
In the WB, Israeli settlement growth, settler violence against Palestinians, and the security barrier continue to affect everyday life. Strict controls remain in place on Palestinians’ entry to Israel and East Jerusalem, and farmers are having difficulty accessing their land near the security barrier and settlements. Pending demolition orders and increased evictions continue to threaten thousands of house owners, especially in East Jerusalem and Area C. The oPt scores 0.737 (110th of 182 countries) on the Human Development Index3, 2 on the Vulnerability Index of the European Commission's Directorate General for Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection (DG ECHO) and 3 on the DG ECHO Crisis Index (2009-2010).