Book Detail
Author: PECDAR
Publisher: PECDAR
Date: 01/08/1995
Price: $ 0.00
 1. Agriculture generates about one-third of CDP employs 17% of the labor force, and accounts for 25% of its exports. Sectoral CDP in real terms doubled in the West Bank in less than a decade starting in 1984; agriculture in Gaza, on the other hand, first declined before it re ed growth at modest rates. The more recent growth in the WBG coincided with the Intifada and falling employment opportunities in Israel.
2. In the last two decades, Palestinian agriculture has suffered from restrictive policies and regulations on the movement of goods and people, confiscation of land, restrictions on water use, neglect of public institutions, and barriers to trade. The frequent closure of borders has contributed to the importance of agriculture in the economy, at least in the short term. Over the long term, the relative contribution of agriculture is expected to fall as a result of faster growth of other sectors and limited water and land resources
3. In the next phase of self rule, construction, industry, services, and tourism are likely to feature prominently in the development plans. Growth in those and other sectors would stimulate the demand for agricultural produce, but would also compete with agriculture for labor, land and water, thus necessitating the modernization of production technology to lessen its dependence on labor.
CONSTRAINTS
4. The agriculture sector in the West Bank and Gaza faces several constraints: (a) an institutional infrastructure inadequate to address the urgent needs of agricultural development; (b) neglect of physical infrastructure of roads, irrigation systems, communications research and extension; lack of credit facilities; (d) severely restricted access to rangeland; (e) the lack of uniform legislation and the related rules and regulations essential for private sector development (laws and regulations are inherited from five different a ’ administrations-Ottoman; British, Jordanian, Egyptian and Israeli); (f) a small, aging and eroding h an resource base due to the absence of provision for recruitment and training ’ g plans and programs; (g) a shortage of modern equipment in offices, laboratories and field stations to sustain operations; (h) lack of clarity on the future role of NGOs and POS. in Palestinian agricultural development and the relationship between them and public institutions; and (i) inadequate data bases needed to develop policies and action Programs.
5. In the long term, water is the main constraint to agricultural development, particularly in Gaza, which faces a crisis situation in the availability and quality of water; but also in the West Bank. The shortage will affect all sectors of the economy and the main user, agriculture, will bear a major share in adjusting to the situation. In addition, land resources are limited as only less than 10% of cultivated land is irrigated.
6. Waste water is an important resource in the overall water balance; if not properly treated, it also poses health risks and ds. Hence it is imperative to identify the most economic methods of water treatment, the level of treatment needed, and the potential uses in agriculture.
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