The head of the Central Bureau of Statistics, Ola Awad, stated that the estimated number of Palestinians at the end of 2022 amounted to about 14.3 million Palestinians; 5.4 million of them live in the State of Palestine on the 1967 borders, with an annual increase of 2.4% at the end of this year.
She added, in a statement issued by the Census today, Thursday, that about 7 million Palestinians still live in diaspora, dreaming of returning to their homeland, of whom 6.4 million are in Arab countries and about 761,000 in foreign countries, and more than 2.2 One million Palestinians are isolated in the Gaza Strip, and about 1.7 million Palestinians live in the 1948 lands.
The Palestinian society is young and more than a third of its population is under 15 years old
Awad explained that the percentage of individuals in the age group 0-14 years at the end of 2022 is estimated at about 38% of the total population in Palestine, 36% in the West Bank and 41% in the Gaza Strip. At the end of 2022, their percentage was estimated at about 3% in Palestine, 4% in the West Bank, and 3% in the Gaza Strip.
A decrease in fertility rates
She pointed out that the total fertility rate during the period (2017-2019) decreased to about 4 births, compared to 5 births in 1999; 4 were born in the West Bank and 4 were born in the Gaza Strip.
Child and infant mortality rates are declining
Awad said that the mortality rate for children under the age of five in the State of Palestine reached 14 children per thousand live births during the period 2015-2019; 15 in the West Bank and 14 in the Gaza Strip, and the infant mortality rate was 12 children per thousand live births for the same period; 12 in the West Bank and 13 children in the Gaza Strip, and the data indicate a decrease in the infant mortality rate during the past ten years, as it reached 15 children per thousand live births.
Decrease in average family size
The average family size decreased to 5 members in 2021 compared to 6 members in 2010; 5 individuals in the West Bank and 6 individuals in the Gaza Strip.
A significant increase in smoking rates and a large gap between the West Bank and Gaza Strip
The results of the Smoking and Tobacco Consumption Survey 2021 indicated that there is an increase in the percentage of individuals aged 18 years and over who smoke one or more smoked tobacco products (manufactured cigarettes, hand-rolled cigarettes, cigars, and hookahs) in Palestine to about 31% of the total individuals, in When this percentage for 2010 was about 23%. At the regional level, the results of the survey indicated a large gap between the West Bank and the Gaza Strip and a clear increase in the prevalence of smoking among individuals 18 years and over in the West Bank, as it reached about 40% in the West Bank in 2021 compared to 17% in the Gaza Strip.
Unemployment remains the main challenge
Awad said that despite the gradual recovery in the performance of the Palestinian economy during the first half of 2022, and the increase recorded in the number of workers in most economic activities, the unemployment rate is still high, and the increase in the unemployment rate is due to the significant increase in unemployment rates in the Gaza Strip. Where nearly half of the participants in the labor force, 45%, are unemployed, compared to about 14% in the West Bank, and there is still a large disparity in the unemployment rate between males and females; 21% among males and 39% among females.
She added that unemployment among young graduates (20-29 years) of intermediate diploma holders and above amounted to 48%, 28% in the West Bank and 73% in the Gaza Strip.
The educational reality in the West Bank and Gaza Strip
Awad explained that the number of students in schools for the academic year 2021/2022 in Palestine reached 1,358,410 students (including 672,567 males and 685,843 females), with 760,688 male and female students in the West Bank (373,519 males and 387,169 females) and 597,722 male and female students. in the Gaza Strip (of whom 299,048 are males and 298,674 are females).
She added that the number of students enrolled in higher education institutions for the academic year 2021/2022 in Palestine reached 225,975 students (86,992 males and 138,983 females), with 138,754 students in the West Bank (49,069 males and 89,685 females) and 87,221 students. and female students in the Gaza Strip (of whom 37,923 are males and 49,298 are females).
She pointed out that the number of graduates from higher education institutions for the academic year 2020/2021 in Palestine reached 46,225 male and female graduates (16,931 males and 29,294 females), with 32,277 male and female graduates in the West Bank (10,763 males and 21,514 females) and 13,948 male and female graduates. in the Gaza Strip (of which 6,168 are males and 7,780 are females).
Continuous Israeli attacks and raging settlements
Awad said that the attacks by the Israeli occupation and its settlers are still continuing against the Palestinian population in all their residential communities, including the seizure of land, the demolition of homes, and the assault on Palestinians. Self-demolition, most of which are located in the Jerusalem governorate, with 88 self-demolition operations, and the Jerusalem governorate topped the total number of demolitions by 29%, which included the demolition of 128 residential buildings and 176 facilities, at a time when the occupying state is building hundreds of settlement units, in which more than 700 thousand live. Settlers in 151 settlements established on Palestinian lands in the West Bank at the end of 2021.
The number of martyrs during the year 2022 until December 26 reached 224 martyrs (53 martyrs in the Gaza Strip and 171 martyrs in the West Bank) according to the records of the Ministry of Health, and the number of languishing prisoners in the occupation prisons reached 4,700 prisoners, until the end of November. November 2022, according to data from the Commission on Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs; Among them are 34 female prisoners, about 150 minors, and 835 administrative detainees, including three female prisoners and four children.
