Memorandum submitted by UNICEF
UNICEF is the world's leading organisation working
specifically for children. We work with local communities and
governments in 156 countries, areas and territories, to provide
emergency relief and run long-term development programmes in areas
such as health, education and child protection. Our global reach
allows us to share knowledge across borders whilst our local presence
means we can deliver assistance where it is needed most. UNICEF
works to encourage governments around the world to help make the
UN Convention on the Rights of the Child a reality for all children.
This paper has been produced in response to the International
Development Select Committee's inquiry into the situation in the
Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT).
IMPACT ON
PALESTINIAN CHILDREN
IN BRIEF
— So far this year, 96 Palestinian
children have been killed. Almost a quarter were below 10 years
of age.
— 75 % of children under the age of
five suffer from vitamin A deficiency.
— 37.9% of children under five and
31.1% of women of child-bearing age are anaemic.
— More than 15% of children under five
are malnourished.
— 226,000 children report that getting
to school is impossible or risky.
— The 389 children are being held in
detention by Israeli forces. [243]
INTRODUCTION
2006 witnessed the weakening of many of the
institutions and systems that provide protection and support for
children. Across the occupied Palestinian territory, the ongoing
conflict; the withholding of resources from the Palestinian Authority;
the decrease in donor funding; and internal strife have generated
a massive increase in poverty and pushed the humanitarian crisis
to the brink of disaster. Escalations in both external and internal
fighting have generated abuses of child rights on an unprecedented
scale, including extraordinary levels of violence both inside
and outside the home. At the end of September 2006, more than
double the number of children had lost their lives due to the
conflict compared with the same period last year, and 404 children
were in detention facilities. Health, education, water and sanitation
and adolescent and psychosocial needs are at critical levels,
with a risk of further deterioration.
The impact on children of the humanitarian situation
in OPT is devastating and indicators on child well being indicate
this. Access to quality health care and education, water and sanitation,
and activities for children and adolescent have been severely
restricted. Violence amongst children is rising, with many showing
signs of acute stress including anxiety, nightmares, and withdrawal.
Psychosocial support for both children and their caregivers has
become more important than ever.
The conflict has had a particularly damaging
impact on adolescents, who comprise a large, vulnerable and volatile
group. At least two thirds do not have safe spaces for recreation
and most of the 300 youth clubs across OPT lack funding and are
poorly managed and equipped. Worsening socio-economic conditions
point to the likelihood that the numbers of adolescents vulnerable
to abuse, violence, and exploitation will increase.
ACCESS RESTRICTIONS
Ongoing access restrictions which are being
imposed by the Israeli government are impeding UNICEF's ability
to provide humanitarian assistance to women and children affected
by this crisis. All sides are responsible for allowing that vital
supplies reach the population and we call on the International
Development Select Committee to use its influence to call on the
UK Government to insist that UNICEF is allowed to deliver services
to those in need in Gaza and the West Bank.
CHILD PROTECTION
The number of Palestinian children being killed
has increased. It is important to stress that 39 children were
killed in July 2006 alone, making it the second highest number
of children killed in a month since the beginning of the Intifada
in September 2000.
Violence in homes and schools has increased.
According to a PCBS[244]
study on domestic violence in February 2006, children are exposed
to assault mainly at home (93.3%) and in schools (45.2%).
Although child labour has not been major concern
so far in the OPT (3.1% of children), it is feared that the current
economic situation will lead to more children having to bring
additional (or even the only, especially if the current Israeli
arrest campaign continues) income to the household and possibly
to higher school drop-out rates.
HEALTH
In the health sector, the lack of essential
drugs and equipment, combined with power, fuel and water shortages
in Gaza, has led to a significant cut back in services. One in
10 children is stunted, one in two is anaemic, and 75% of children
under the age of five suffer from vitamin A deficiency. Deepening
poverty and food shortages in Gaza are also exacerbating nutrition
deficiencies. The majority of child deaths occur in the first
month of life because they are born prematurely or with a low
birth weight, and the lack of drugs and equipment to provide proper
care.
In the Gaza Strip, power supply continues to
be a major issue of concern for service provision, especially
diagnostic and immunisation services at the primary health care
level where 50% of clinics have no generator. All hospitals have
reduced their services between January and August 2006. Diagnostic
services were those most affected, mostly due to lack of laboratory
reagents, shortages of x-ray films and other equipment.
Micronutrient deficiencies are the main health
problems in OPT with anaemia remaining a severe public health
challenge. [245]22%
of under 5s are vitamin A deficient and 20% show signs of iodine
deficiency. [246]In
Gaza, 4.1% are suffering from Vitamin D deficiency (rickets).
The main causes of mortality among all age groups
are related to non communicable diseases. Data on maternal mortality
are insufficient, and likely to be underestimated. The infant
(25.2) and under five mortality (29.1) rates for the Palestinian
population in the OPT are relatively low and the life expectancy
(72.3) is increasing while the fertility rate is one of the highest
in the region. However, infant mortality rates and under five
mortality rates are on a stagnating course, limiting progress
in achieving MDG 4 by 2015.
Most recently in respect of the strike mainly
in the West Bank, primary health centres are not providing services
during the strike and hospitals are significantly reduced in their
services down to only 5-10%, only covering critical cases. Immunisation
services have also been affected although a full day of immunization
services is organised weekly covering up to 80% of needs. As an
example of the impact of the strike on deliveries, normally in
Hebron some 600 deliveries take place monthly in the government
hospital. For September only 100 deliveries took place at the
hospital and approximately 200 were carried out in private clinics
ie some 300 deliveries were made elsewhere most likely in an unsafe
environment.
EDUCATION
The simple act of going to school on a daily
basis remains a serious challenge for both students and their
teachers. When children are unable to access their schools, it
is difficult for them to maintain their studies, and when they
do return to school, they need help in catching up with their
missed lessons. Education quality also continues to be serious
problem as schools lack basic teaching and learning materials,
and few teachers have the skills needed to create child-friendly
learning environments. Outside classrooms, students have few opportunities
for sports and recreation. It is estimated that 226,000 children
in 580 schools find going to school, a basic right for children,
impossible, irregular or risky.
The education sector has suffered considerably
since the beginning of the year. Current open ended strikes of
poorly skilled and motivated teachers have prevented 1.5 million
children from attending school. Levels of violence in schools
are rising along with drop out rates, particularly in older male
children. The closure system, [247]curfews
and numerous military operations have frequently constrained the
mobility of teachers and students, especially in the northern
part of the West Bank in Jenin and Nablus districts.
ADOLESCENTS
"There are 750,000 young people in Gaza
who want to be productive citizens but who feel there is not future
for them".[248]
The conflict has also had a damaging impact
on adolescents who comprise a large, vulnerable and volatile group,
almost 20% of the total population. The major constraint faced
by two thirds of these adolescents is the lack of access to safe
spaces for recreation. The 300 youth clubs that exists in the
OPT are poorly managed and equipped. Worsening socio-economic
conditions are likely to lead to an increase in the number of
adolescents vulnerable to abuse, violence and exploitation.
IMPLICATIONS OF
THE HAMAS
ELECTION VICTORY
IN FEBRUARY
2006
Unemployment is now at 40% and currently affects
265,000 people and their dependants. Recently released data indicates
that 67% of Palestinian households fall under the poverty line,
[249]affecting
70% of the population approximately 2.5 million people.
The unique institutional crisis of the Palestinian
Authority has hit Palestinian households hard. The estimated 160,000
employees, who support a quarter of the Palestinian population,
have not been paid in full since March 2006. Only one month's
cash subsidies for 40,000 of the most vulnerable Palestinian families
identified by the Ministry of Social Affairs have been paid by
the PA over the past seven months. According to a poll conducted
by PCBS[250]
in the 2nd Quarter of 2006, 41% of households in the West Bank
and 82% in the Gaza Strip stated that they had been directly or
indirectly affected by the non-payment of PA employees' salaries.
PCBS found that households dependant on salaries
from the public sector are resorting to negative coping strategies
including postponing paying bills (83.5%), relying on past savings
(26.3%), selling jewellery (29.6%) and reducing consumption of
fresh meat (88.6%). Households are also becoming heavily indebted,
with 65% reliant on informal borrowing in order to subsist. The
reliance on negative coping strategies was most apparent in Gaza
households. If this situation continues, the World Bank estimates
that real GDP per capita will decline by 27% by December 2006
and personal income (real GDI) by 30%.
Recent World Food Programme assessments indicate
that 51% of Palestinians are food insecure which represents a
14% increase in the past year. They are also unable to cover their
families' daily requirements without external assistance. As long
as the current political and economic crisis continues, it is
important to highlight that food insecurity will remain a major
concern in OPT.
The Palestinian Authority's VAT and custom taxes,
which amount to approximately 60 US dollars a month plus interest,
have been withheld by the Israeli government since March 2006,
in contravention of the 1994 Paris Protocol. This amount represents
approximately two thirds of the Palestinian public revenue. Further
more, international donors have suspended their direct support
to the Palestinian Authority. This support will be withheld for
as long as the three principles of non-violence, recognition of
Israel and of previous agreements and obligations[251]
are not met by the Hamas led government. This situation is putting
significant pressure on Palestinian institutions, including those
with a basic public service delivery role. Internally generated
incomes (taxes and fees) have also declined with the contraction
of the Palestinian economy. A banking crisis has also been triggered,
partly due to a fear of litigation.
How effectively have the UK, World Bank and EC
responded to the new reality?
The Temporary International Mechanism (TIM)
established by the EU at the request of the Quartet has so far
only had limited impact. In the meantime, UN agencies are increasing
their support in areas such as health and education.
The impact of the suspension of aid to the Palestinian
Authority and the impact of the temporary international mechanism
for Palestinian basic needs, agreed by the Quartet and the European
Council
Since last March, the PA has been unable to
pay the salaries of approximately 160,000 employees which is directly
affecting the living conditions of a large proportion of the Palestinian
population, including children. As public services are to remain
largely or partially unfunded, a significant deterioration of
preventative and recovery social services is likely. There is
a risk that some services, now provided free, would have to be
paid by users. Access to existing services remains an issue of
concern due mainly to the movement restrictions and difficulties
in paying transportation.
Shifting funding from PA to NGO/private sector,
for various social services is eroding the capacity of the PA
and service infrastructure that the international community has
been building for the last 12 years.
TIM is providing some relief through its three
windows. Window 1 is not yet operational and window 2 on utilities
works well. Window 3 has provided "one off" allowances
to 42,983 low income PA employees, including 26,000 teachers,
11,907 Ministry of Health employees and 32,800 individuals including
pensioners. Difficulties in implementing window 1 have significantly
delayed the project. UN agencies have therefore had to step in,
much to the confusion of donors.
The impact on Palestinian development of Association
Agreements between the EU and Israel/Palestine
The Association Agreements have never been implemented
in a consistent manner so impact is difficult to evaluate.
The challenges faced by the UN in addressing humanitarian
affairs in the Palestinian territories and in service provision,
and its effectiveness in meeting those challenges
The challenges include meeting the basic needs
of the Palestinian people without replacing the Palestinian Authority,
supporting the Palestinian Authority in conducting rapid needs
assessment, particularly of the most vulnerable groups.
Humanitarian aid through UNICEF has helped to
continue outreach psychosocial support; to continue prevention
and awareness raising on violence, mental health and psychosocial
issues; to continue provision of safe, participatory recreational
activities for children and young people; to establish mechanisms
to address violence in homes and schools; to train relevant professionals
on prevention, detection and follow-up of psychosocial and violence
issues.
The UN will also continue to advocate for the
full implementation of international humanitarian law and the
respect of the Palestinians' human rights. Whilst the UN can provide
important humanitarian support it will never, and should not,
be in a position to provide the basic social services that the
PA should be providing as a government function.
The impact on development in the Palestinian Territories
of Israel's disengagement from Gaza and the possibility of further
disengagement from parts of the West Bank
Achieving a reasonable level of development
is extremely difficult under the present circumstances: the governmental
structure is not functioning properly due to the decreased financial
support and even less since the start, at the end of August, of
open ended strikes in the public sectors, especially in those
of health and education. The development plan is not, for obvious
reasons, being implemented and no annual budget has so far been
published for 2006; the international aid is largely withheld;
and the Israeli measures, especially those related to the restriction
of the free movements of people, goods and services are increasing
with the highest number of access and movement restrictions since
August 2005.
Whilst movements within Gaza were already restricted,
the disengagement from the Gaza Strip has led to almost total
isolation of the Strip from Israel and the rest of the world,
as the sea, land and air space are still under tight Israeli control.
The objectives of the Agreement on Movement and Access[252]
(AMA) have not been implemented. Throughout 2006, there has been
a 40% increase in the number of physical obstacles in the West
Bank. Despite an estimated 35,000 Gazans reliant on the fishing
industry for their livelihoods, no Palestinian fishermen have
been allowed by Israel to fish off the Gaza Strip coast line since
25 June 2006.
The impact on Palestinian trade, employment, and
economic development of customs duties and taxes levied by Israel
or those collected by Israel on behalf of the PA at Israeli ports
and airports and points of entry to the West Bank and Gaza
The current financial crisis is having a negative
impact. In general, custom duties and taxes levied by Israel are
relatively high by Palestinian standards. It is therefore necessary
to reconsider the existing trade regime as defined by the 1994
Paris Protocol. Trade policy is also at the core of the policy
of "asymmetric containment" whereby, together with fiscal,
monetary and labour policies, it maintains the Palestinian compliance
with the security-first logic of the political process by applying
one-sided sanctions. By the third quarter of 2006, the PA had
come to a virtual standstill with 73 % of its employees no longer
able to make ends meet because of unpaid wages.
The impact of the separation barrier and other
controls on the movement of goods and people on employment, poverty,
economic development and on the delivery of humanitarian assistance
Continued and increasing restrictions on access
and movements of people, goods and services remain the primary
cause of poverty and economic depression in the OPT. The Barrier
is having a direct destructive impact on important parts of the
Palestinian Territory (51% of total planned 703 kms completed)
and its inhabitants. This includes the confiscation of land, uprooting
of olive and fruit trees, destruction of wells and houses, restrictive
permit systems, isolation from the rest of the West Bank of more
than 200,000 Palestinians living in occupied East Jerusalem. Some
60,500 Palestinians from 42 communities are now facing additional
movement restrictions as they reside between the 1949 Armistice
Line and the Barrier. Education, health, work, recreational and
commercial facilities are becoming more and more difficult to
reach. It is also increasingly difficult for Palestinians to reach
their agricultural land. This isolation of families from support
networks and services undermine their ability to cope with daily
life. The permit system and the enforcement of age and residency
restrictions are increasingly being used to reinforce the fragmentation
of the West Bank, including the Jordan Valley.
The control that the network of settlements in
the occupied territories have over the basic conditions for the
development of the Palestinian economy: agricultural land, water,
movement of persons and goods, environmental impacts
Water use disproportion between the Palestinian
population (83 cubic metres per person per year), Israeli (333)
and settlers (1,450) bears evident consequences on living conditions
(poor quality and small quantity of water available for drinking
and cooking, poor sanitation system). The current status of drinking
water is well below international standards for the protection
of public health (minimum standard 150 litres per person a day).
Indeed, per capita consumption at the annual average for 2005
is 58 in the west Bank and 81 in the Gaza Strip.
The Gaza strip relies predominantly on wells.
These wells are being infiltrated by salty sea water due to Israel's
over-pumping of the groundwater. The UN estimates there will be
no drinking water available in the Gaza Strip by 2021.
The operations of sanitary land fills and garbage
collection trucks have been reduced by 50%. The presence in the
West Bank of more than 400,000 settlers living in hundred of settlements
has a very negative impact on the daily life of the Palestinian
population and on the development of the Palestinian economy and
daily life.
The role of civil society, including NGOs, in
ensuring a broad popular participation in the development of Palestinian
society
The civil society, including NGOs, could have
a positive impact if its actions were better co-ordinated. Today,
the risk of NGOs taking more and more of the PA`s responsibilities
is great.
The role of development assistance in supporting
political solutions to the conflict
It is evident that improving the economic and
living conditions of the Palestinian people would create a better
atmosphere which would be more conducive to political process.
The opposite is also of course true ie the more political progress
achieved, the easier it will be to have economic development on
the Palestinian side.
Future development needs of a Palestinian state
and the potential for its economic co-operation with Israel
The future needs of a Palestinian state are
immense. A precondition of any way forward is the functioning
of public systems, in particular, the health and education sectors,
where it will be of paramount importance to provide financial
and technical assistance to health and education providers. Financial
assistance to the Ministries of Health and Education is essential
in order to prevent the total collapse of the primary health care
and education systems.
October 2006
243 Two thirds of the children in detention are from
very low or no income households and are mainly from the Ramallah
and Nablus districts. Back
244
Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics. Back
245
37.9% of children under five and 31.1% of women of child-bearing
age are anaemic. Back
246
32% in West Bank and 3% in Gaza Strip. Back
247
The closure system is the policy of physical barriers (checkpoints,
road gates, earth mounds, road blocks etc.) and permit requirements
used by Israel to control Palestinian pedestrian and vehicular
movements). Back
248
Statement made by Jan Egeland, UN Under Secretary General for
Humanitarian Affairs in October 2006. Back
249
The relative poverty line stands at $477 per month for a reference
household of six members ie two adults and four children. Back
250
Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics. Back
251
Statement of the Quartet, 30 January 2006. Back
252
15 November 2005. Back
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