Date: 29 / 04 / 2009  Time:  10:21
Gaza – Ma’an –

The Gaza Strip is still under a tight Israeli military siege, supported by an Egyptian closure of the border and a NATO regime of marine embargo.

 With Labor Day approaching the Gaza City Chamber of Commerce released the latest unemployment figures for the besieged Strip and found the unemployment rate climbed to 44.8%, excluding those who have given up looking for work, in 2008.

A report by Mahir Al-Tabba'a, director of public relations at the Chamber of Commerce in Gaza City, found that 85% of the population in the Gaza Strip is dependent on humanitarian aid offered by UNRWA, the World Food Program, and other organizations. This was up from 63% in 2007.

According to the International Labor Organization standards, unemployment rate in the Gaza Strip was 44.8% in 2008. There were 200,000 unemployed workers. The poverty rate was 80%.

According to Al-Tabba'a, only 1,400 workers remain employed in the industrial sector, down from 35,000 before the June 2007 siege. He explained that 96% of 3,900 Gazan industrial facilities have closed due to absence of raw material for their industries. The remaining facilities are food-producing plants which now employ only 15% of their capacity or even less.

Since Israel closed its borders with Gaza in June 2007, exports have ceased, and imports of raw materials have all but stopped. In addition, the three-week Israeli military offensive on Gaza in December and January destroyed numerous factories and workshops.