Palestine: What are the costs of the damage from the war in Gaza on the Palestinian territories?

These are only preliminary assessments, based in particular on the provisional rapid assessment of damages and needs (RDNA) mechanism set up by the World Bank since November 2023, in partnership with IPSOS, on the basis of analysis of satellite images in particular. The World Bank draws attention to the fact that these estimates will necessarily increase once the Gaza Strip is accessible again.

If all economic sectors are affected, the largest share of damage concerns housing, representing 72% of the estimated costs and leaving more than a million people homeless (out of the country’s 2.2 million inhabitants). enclave) beyond the displacement of people (75% of the population) caused by the fighting.

The following items are public infrastructure in the areas of water, education and health, accounting for 19% of the damage assessed and finally industrial and commercial buildings, for 9% of the damage. The bombings also caused the accumulation of 26 million tons of debris, the removal of which will take years.

Beyond infrastructure, the study also highlights the dramatic consequences of this damage for the Gazan population.

92% of primary roads are destroyed or seriously damaged, which makes the delivery of humanitarian aid even more complex, particularly in the north of the enclave. While 84% of health establishments are destroyed or very seriously damaged, the lack of electricity and water hampers the operation of the few remaining establishments. The system of access to water and sanitation has collapsed, today providing only 5% of its pre-war output, which was already under pressure.

The education system is at a complete standstill. More than half of the population is on the verge of famine and all of the enclave’s inhabitants face food insecurity and malnutrition. While the development of infants born in conflict is threatened, the effects on the physical and mental health of the entire population will last for generations.

Beyond the provisional dimension of these assessments, in the absence of a ceasefire, it is generally estimated that the cost of reconstruction is generally two to three times higher than the cost of the damage suffered.

For comparison, during the previous Gaza war in 2014, the cost of damage was USD 1.4 billion while the cost of reconstruction was USD 3.9 billion, based on the methodology RDNA. Similarly, during the February 2022 earthquake in Turkey, damages represented USD 3.7 billion and reconstruction needs amounted to USD 7.9 billion.

Source: French Embassy in Jerusalem