West Bank of the Jordan River

General information: The Israeli-Palestinian declaration on the principles of internal self-government, signed in Washington on September 13, 1993, provides for a transitional period (no more than 5 years) to introduce temporary Palestinian self-government in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank of the Jordan River. Under the terms of this agreement, Israel agreed to transfer certain powers to the Palestinian Authority, including the Palestinian Legislative Council, elected in January 1996, as part of the West Bank and Gaza self-government system. The transfer of power and authority in the Gaza Strip and Jericho took place in accordance with the Cairo Israeli-Palestinian agreement on the Gaza Strip and the Jericho area of ​​May 4, 1994, and in other areas of the West Bank, in accordance with the interim Israeli-Palestinian agreement of September 28, 1995, the Israeli-Palestinian protocol on the withdrawal of troops from Hebron of January 15, 1997, the Israeli-Palestinian Wye River memorandum of 23 October 1998 and the Sharm el-Sheikh Agreement of September 4, 1999. The Israeli-Palestinian Declaration of Principles of September 13, 1993 stipulates that Israel shall, during a transitional period, remain responsible for internal and external security and public order in the settlements and among Israeli citizens. The permanent status of the Palestinian territories should be determined in the course of direct negotiations, which resumed in September 1999 after a three-year break. The intifada resumed in September 2000;

Geography

Location: Middle East, west of the Jordan River.
Geographical coordinates: 32° 00′ N. 35° 15′ E E.
Reference map: Middle East.
Area: total: 5,860 km2; land surface area: 5,640 km2; water surface area: 220 km2; note: includes West Bank, Latrun Salient and the northwestern quarter of the Dead Sea, but excludes Mount Scopus; East Jerusalem and the Jerusalem no-man’s-land are counted only in the total area of ​​territories occupied by Israel in 1967.
Comparative area: slightly smaller than the Delaware yoke.
Land borders: total: 404 km; with neighboring states: with Israel 307 km, with Jordan 97 km.
Coastline: 0 km (landlocked).
Maritime claims: none (landlocked).
Climate: temperate, temperature and precipitation vary with altitude, warm to hot summers, cool to mild winters.
Terrain: mostly rugged mountainous terrain, sparse vegetation in the west, desert in the east.
Maximum and minimum heights: lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m; highest point: Mount Tol-Ashur 1,022 m.
Natural resources: fertile land.
Land use: arable land: 27%; cultivated land: 0%; pastures: 32%; forests and plantations: 1%; others: 40%.
Irrigated land: no data.
Natural hazards: no data available.
Current environmental issues: provision of fresh water supply; discharge of sewage.
International agreements on environmental protection:
Note to the section “Geography”: landlocked; the highlands are the main sources of water for Israel; there are 231 Israeli settlements and civilian land holdings in the West Bank and 29 in East Jerusalem (August 1999 est.).

Population

Population: 2,090,713 people; note: also 176,000 Israeli settlers in the West Bank and about 173,000 in East Jerusalem (July 2001 est.).
Age structure: under 14: 44.61% (male 478,232; female 454,439); from 15 to 64 years old: 51.8% (male 552,661; female 530,230); over 65: 3.59% (male 32,629; female 42,522) (2001 est.).
Population growth: 3.48% (2001 est.).
Birth rate: 35.83 newborns / 1000 people. (2001 est.).
Mortality: 4.37 deaths / 1000 people. (2001 est.).
Migration: 3.29 people / 1000 people (2001 est.).
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.06 male/female; under 15: 1.05 male/female; 15 to 64 years old: 1.04 male/female; over 65: 0.77 male/female; for the general population: 1.04 male/female (2001 est.);
Child mortality: 21.78 deaths/1000 live births (2001 est.).
Life expectancy: for the general population: 72.28 years; men: 70.58 years; women: 74.07 years (2001 est.).
General birth rate: 4.9 children/wives. (2001 est.).
Proportion of the adult population infected with HIV: no data available.
Number of people infected with HIV: no data.
Mortality due to AIDS: no data available.
Nationality: noun: no data; adjective: no data.
Ethnic groups: Palestinian Arabs and others 83%, Jews 17%.
Believers: Muslims 75% (mostly Sunnis), Jews 17%, Christians and others 8%.
Language(s): Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Jewish settlers and many Palestinians), English (understood by many).
Literacy: definition: no data; for the general population: no data available; men: no data; women: no data. State Name:

Economics

Economy overview: According to Jibin123.com, the conditions for economic activity in the West Bank are determined by the Paris Economic Protocol between Israel and the Palestinian Authority of April 1994. GDP per capita fell by 36.1% between 1992 and 1996. due to the simultaneous decline in total income and rapid population growth. The decline was largely a consequence of Israel’s policy of closing its border with the Palestinian Authority following outbreaks of violence, which has crippled trade and labor movement between Israel and the Palestinian territories. The most serious negative effect of this recession was chronic unemployment: the average unemployment rate in the West Bank and Gaza during the 1980s. stayed below the 5% mark; by the mid 1990s. it exceeded 20%. Since 1997, Israel has less frequently used full border closures and, since 1998, introduced new policies to reduce the impact of border closures and other security measures on the movement of Palestinian goods and labor. These changes in the economic environment contributed to a three-year economic recovery in the West Bank and Gaza; real GDP grew by 5% in 1998 and by 6% in 1999. The recovery was interrupted in the last quarter of 2000 by the outbreak of Palestinian terrorism, which forced Israel to close the borders of the Palestinian Authority and dealt a severe blow to Palestinian trade and demand for labor. real GDP grew by 5% in 1998 and by 6% in 1999. The recovery was interrupted in the last quarter of 2000 by the outbreak of Palestinian terrorism, which forced Israel to close the borders of the Palestinian Authority and dealt a severe blow to Palestinian trade and demand for labor. real GDP grew by 5% in 1998 and by 6% in 1999. The recovery was interrupted in the last quarter of 2000 by the outbreak of Palestinian terrorism, which forced Israel to close the borders of the Palestinian Authority and dealt a severe blow to Palestinian trade and demand for labor.
GDP: at purchasing power parity – $3.1 billion (2000 est.).
Real GDP growth rate: -7.5% (1999 est.).
GDP per capita: at purchasing power parity – $1,500 (2000 est.).
The composition of GDP by sectors of the economy: agriculture: 9%; industry: 28%; services: 63% (including Gaza) (1999 est.).
Proportion of the population below the poverty line: no data available.
Percentage distribution of household income or consumption: for the poorest 10% of households: n/a; by top 10% of households: no data.
Inflation rate at consumer prices: 3% (including Gaza) (2000 est.).
Labor force: no data.
Employment structure: agriculture 13%, industry 21%, services 66% (1996).
Unemployment rate: 40% (including Gaza) (late 2000).
Budget: revenues: $1.6 billion; spending: $1.73 billion including capital investment – NA (including Gaza) (1999 est.).
Economic sectors: mainly small family businesses producing cement, textiles, soaps, olive wood crafts and mother-of-pearl souvenirs; Israel established several small modern factories in the industrial center.
Growth in industrial production: no data available.
Power generation: no data; note – electricity is mainly imported from Israel; The East Jerusalem Electricity Company buys and distributes electricity in East Jerusalem and the West Bank territories; The Israel Electricity Company directly supplies electricity to most Jewish residents and to the needs of the military; at the same time, some Palestinian municipalities, such as Nablus and Jenin, generate their own electricity at small stations.
Sources of electricity generation: fossil fuels: no data available; hydropower: no data; nuclear fuel: no data; others: no data.
Electricity consumption: no data.
Export of electricity: no data.
Electricity import: no data.
Agricultural products: olives, citrus fruits, vegetables; beef, dairy products.
Exports: $682 million (including Gaza) (free on board, 1998 est.).
Exports: olives, fruits, vegetables, limestone.
Export partners: Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip.
Imports: $2.5 billion (including Gaza) (S.I.F., 1998 est.).
Imports: food, consumer goods, building materials.
Import partners: Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip.
External debt: $108 million (including Gaza) (1997 est.). Economic aid recipient: $121 million (including Gaza) (2000).
Donor Economic Assistance:
Currency: Israeli new shekel, Jordanian dinar.
Currency code: ILS, JOD.
Exchange rate: ILS/USD -4.0810 (December 2000), 4.0773 (2000), 4.1397 (1999), 3.8001 (1998), 3.4494 (1997), 3.1917 (1996), 3.0113 (1995); JOD/ USD – fixed rate of 0.7090 since 1996.
Fiscal year: calendar year (since January 1, 1992).

Telecommunications

Telecommunications Telephone lines: 95,729 (total for Gaza and the West Bank) (1997).
Mobile cellular phones: no data available.
Telephone system: internal: no data; international: no data; note: the Israeli company BEZEK and the Palestinian company PALTEL are responsible for the communications service in the West Bank.
Broadcast stations: AM – 1, FM – 0, shortwave – 0 (1998); note: The Palestinian Broadcasting Corporation operates an AM radio station on 675 kHz; many local private stations are reported (2000).
Radio receivers: no data; note – most Palestinian families have radios (1999).
Television broadcast stations: no data.
TVs: no data; note – many Palestinian families have television sets (1999).
Internet Country Code:
Internet Service Providers: 8 (1999).
Number of users: 23,520 (including Gaza) (1999).

Transport

Transport Railways: 0 km.
Roads: total: 4,500 km; coated: 2,700 km; unpaved: 1,800 km (1997 est.); note: Israel has built many highways to serve Jewish settlements.
Ports and harbours: none.
Airports: 3 (2000 est.).
Airports with paved runways: total: 3; from 2438 to 3047 m:1; from 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1; less than 914 m: 1 (2000 est.).

International Issues

International Issues International Disputes: The West Bank and the Gaza Strip are Israeli-occupied territories with a temporary status determined by the Israeli-Palestinian agreement, a permanent status to be determined through further negotiations.