Grand opening of Palestinian Investment Promotion Agency ACTIVITIES • DCA • Promote Small Farm and Household Agriculture • PITA • SMART • PAPA • PED • Completed Activities RELATED PROGRAM INFORMATION • Features • Reports • Program Budget • Program Partners • Business Opportunities

• 58% of Palestinian families live below the poverty line of $411 per month.
• Unemployment is a great in the West Bank and Gaza. The Palestinian workforce is made up of about 900,000 people, 40% of which are unemployed. Unemployment is much higher in Gaza than in the West Bank.
• The Palestinian economy depends heavily on Israel for trade. Over 70% of imports come from Israel and more than 90% of Palestinian exports transit through Israel.
• Since the second Intifada, the Palestinian economy has sharply declined. Real GDP per capita fell by almost 40%, unemployment nearly tripled and poverty rate increased to 67%.

USAID Responds

USAID/West Bank and Gaza's Economic Growth portfolio focuses on:
(1) Assisting in increasing the efficiency at borders
(2) Increasing access to financial services
(3) Assisting in business development
(4) Supporting export oriented agriculture production

The current portfolio of around $90 million for sustaining Private Sector Economic Opportunities is a combination of emergency response and long-term economic development projects. Private sector development is a vehicle to economic development and employment generation. Therefore, sustaining and developing Palestinian businesses and entrepreneurs is vital for creating the needed cluster of Palestinian companies that can compete in the global markets.

USAID's Economic Growth Program broadly promotes local sales and exports, builds the capacity of Palestinian businesses, stimulates investment, creates and sustains jobs. Accordingly, USAID is engaged in supporting micro-finance service delivery, promoting trade and private sector development, supporting business revitalization, expanding export-related agriculture, and providing expertise and infrastructure to maintain open borders.

Results

• PITA improves the flow of cargo into and out of West Bank and Gaza.
• PAPA facilitated the security, transfer, and operation of the Gaza greenhouses to the private sector.
• PER assisted over 800 firms and facilitated more than $18 million in business transactions.
• USAID has issued 4,667 in housing loans totaling $21,723,650 for low income families thus improving the lives of 23,335 Palestinians.

Last updated on January 25, 2007.