The United Nations has estimated the total cost to the Palestinian people of the occupation in the period 2000-2017 to be $ 47.7 billion, at a rate of $ 2.5 billion annually.
This came during a panel discussion between Palestinian economists at the Palestinian Economic Policy Research Institute (MAS) in Ramallah.
The amount, according to a report by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), includes public revenue losses in the period and the cumulative benefits estimated at $ 28.2 billion, in addition to $ 6.6 billion is the value of leakage in the budget of the PNA.
According to the report, these amounts represent three times the government budget deficit of $ 17.7 million.
The report noted that if the $ 47 billion had been reasonably invested in the Palestinian economy, it would have created 2 million additional jobs over 18 years, at a rate of $ 110,000 annually.
The report identified the financial cost since 2000 as the end date of the Palestinian Authority´s interim rule and the transition to a final solution.
The report attributed the financial losses, according to a press release distributed to the participants in the dialogue to "measures imposed by the occupation, and deprive the Palestinian government of real control over its financial resources."
The financial loss referred to in the report resulted from the failure to properly implement the Paris Agreement.
The "Paris Protocol" governing economic relations between the PNA and the occupation was signed in 1994.
