2. The people living and making their livelihoods in the Access
Restricted Area (ARA) of the Gaza Strip were severely affected
during the summer 2014 war and continue to suffer from
the blockade, access restrictions and from a variety of other
International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights violations.
One man was killed and 25 injured in the ARA during the period
between the last ceasefire in August and late December 2014.1
Access restrictions, their enforcement and the damage
done to the agricultural lands during the war all hinder
productivity in the ARA (where 35% of Gaza’s agricultural
lands are located) and farmers’ access to livelihoods.
INTRODUCTION
CHALLENGES FACED BY FARMERS IN THE ARA ARE:
After the latest 51-day war on Gaza, PU-AMI conducted base-line
surveys with 532 war-affected farmers in seven villages
(Abbassan Al Kabira, Khuza’a, Al Fukhari, Al Shouka, East of Al
Maghazi, East of Al Buraij, and Johr Ad Dik).The livelihoods of
285 of these farmers are located in the ARA. As the findings of
the assessment show clear challenges faced by farmers, PU-
AMI used the information they provided to draw a picture of
agriculture in the ARA for this factsheet. The information below
is not meant to be comprehensive, and issues other than the ones
detailed above, are also to be mentioned – such as the high price of
seeds and seedlings, fertilizers, pesticides, and agricultural tools.
DAMAGES TO THE LANDS AND ACCESS RESTRICTIONS
> DAMAGES SUSTAINED TO AGRICULTURAL ASSETS
All farmlands assessed by PU-AMI are in the eastern side of Gaza Strip, the area that was the most affected during the last
war, especially during the military ground operation. In the summer of 2014, most of the assessed farmers had losses in
crops (88%), and damages to irrigation networks (87%). The mass loss of agricultural assets - a main source of income
for these vulnerable families - exacerbates their already deteriorated and insecure economic situation. To compound their
vulnerability, not only was their main source of income damaged, but the homes of 73% of those interviewed were severely,
if not completely, damaged.
> THE ACCESS RESTRICTIONS
All participant farmers visited under this assessment are affected by access restrictions to their lands, located
between 100 and 1,500 meters from the fence that separates the Gaza Strip from Israel. Those lands have been severely
and repetitively damaged over the years due to re-occurring wars and incursions by the Israeli Forces (IF).Access restrictions
make their rehabilitation difficult and dangerous. Indeed, the access restrictions are enforced by the IF through an excessive
use of force, and people approaching the barrier within the unclearly defined ARA extension put their lives at risk just to
work.2
Moreover, due to the proximity of those lands and the separation barrier with Israel, farmers here can only plant cheap
rain-fed crops like wheat and parsley. The Israeli authorities do not allow Palestinians to plant crops higher than 80 cm
in this area, forcing farmers to plant crops that yield little value. They claim such procedures are for security reasons,
as they require that borderlands be exposed so that they can effectively control the area.
While ARA agricultural lands are supposed to constitute
the main food basket of the Gaza Strip, a majority of the
farmers working in the area are quickly becoming food
insecure. As shown in the chart, agriculture is the main
source of income for 81% of the surveyed farmers’
households, and even people who have temporary work
are working in farms. The average monthly income of the
surveyed farmer households amounts to less than 180
EUR. 96% of the households exist well below the poverty
line, according to estimations by the Palestinian Bureau
of Statistics (PCBS).3
57% of their monthly expenditures
are spent on food that they cannot self-produce due to
damages to their farmlands and access restrictions.4
LACK OF MONEY FOR REHABILITATION AND MANPOWER
84% of the assessed farmers have been forced to take out loans – a negative coping mechanism to deal with
low income. The average debt held by the households interviewed by PU-AMI was 2,650 EUR. 78% of the debt is
agricultural, almost half of which was used to purchase fertilizers. Farmers have developed the negative habit of making
excessive use of fertilizers, hoping to increase productivity. As fertilizers are considered dual-use goods by Israel, their
import into Gaza is prohibited; their presence in the market is therefore very low, while demand remains high, resulting
in very high costs.5
1. OCHA,Protection of Civilians weekly reports (From 26th August till 26th December 2014): http://www.ochaopt.org/reports.aspx?id=104.
2. For more information: PU-AMI, Lost Crops and Insecurity, Jan. 2015: http://en.calameo.com/read/0011936473aa6971c2ea4
3. Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), 2011 http://www.pcbs.gov.ps/Portals/_PCBS/Downloads/Book1899.pdf
4. Idem. According to PCBS, the standard of living is considered worrying if the food expenditure accounts for more than 45% of the total monthly expenditure where food expenditure in rich countries do not represent more
than 20% of the total expenditure.
5. Internal Displacement Monitoring Center & Palestinian Center for Human Rights, Under fire, Jan. 2014: http://www.pchrgaza.org/files/2014/palestine-under-fire-report-en.pdf, Dual-use goods are ones that Israel considers
“items which have been designated for civilian use yet can be utilized in military situations” (http://www.cogat.idf.il/sip_storage/files/4/4014.pdf).
Main source of income of the assessed farmers
Agricultural/breeding activities
Income from property (i.e
cultivating land, leasing lands,
etc.)
Temporary work
Aid
Regular Job
41%
40%
11%
4%
4%
3. CASE STUDY
Amona Ahmed Abu Rejalaa is a farmer from the village
of Khuza’a (Khan Younis Governorate). She is a widow
and the breadwinner for a family of six. She has been
working in agriculture for years and was one of PU-
AMI’s beneficiaries in a 2013 project funded by the
European Commission Humanitarian Aid and Civil
Protection Department (ECHO).
When asked about the difficulties she faces in accessing
and planting her land in the ARA, Amona sighed before
commenting on many serious challenges. “Whenever I
or any of my sons want to reach our land, we access it
at our own risk. We risk our lives every time.” She adds,
“Before 2005, I used to have greenhouses here where I
grew tomatoes and I used to earn good money exporting
these tomatoes to the West Bank, Israel and abroad. I
didn’t depend on any aid and never asked people for
money. Since the imposition of access restrictions in 2005
and the blockade in 2007, the situation has been totally
different. Exportation is not allowed, access is limited and
risky (as we often hear warning shots and have to leave),
fertilizers are expensive and unavailable, and we are left
with very low income and increasing debts.” During the
previous wars in 2009 and 2012, her land was already
damaged. She has accumulative debts on agricultural
materials of over 1,000 EUR on seeds, fertilizers and
pesticides, “which are very expensive while some are
not even available in the market,” as Amona mentions.
During the latest 51-day Israeli operation in July-
August 2014, Amona, along with her family, was
forced to leave her house. She couldn’t reach her land
at all, as access was completely prohibited 3km from
the fences. Her corn crops dried out, and she lost the
entire season’s crop. Her poultry farm of 2500 chicks
was also destroyed.
Farmers in ARA suffer from a limited availability, inadequate quality (because of the high salinity) and increased prices
of water for agriculture.
Water for agriculture in the ARA is extracted from artesian water wells, and its price is regulated by the Palestinian
Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) - it is generally priced between 1 and 2.5 NIS per cubic meter (m³) depending on the
area.9
Due to the acute water scarcity in Gaza, however, most of the ARA farmers are forced to rely on unofficial wells
managed by private owners. Due to the unavailability and high cost of fuel needed to run these wells, the cost of
water is as high as 2 to 5 NIS per m³, and doesn’t adequately meet the crop needs due to the low capacity and fuel
shortages that limit pumping.
In addition, agricultural activities in the Gaza Strip have been associated with an excessive and uncontrolled use of
pesticides. According to farmers and organizations working with them on the field, those chemicals have potentially
contaminated the soil, causing severe health concerns. They also believe that weapons used by Israel during the
latest war in the Gaza Strip, and particularly in the ARA, such as gas bombs and other explosives, have severely
contaminated the soil as well. Although the lack of needed laboratory equipment has so far made it impossible to
scientifically prove it, farmers in the ARA have noticed a qualitative and quantitative decrease in productivity over the
last years, and many indicators show that Gaza‘s farmlands are toxic.10
WATER AND ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES
THE BLOCKADE: IMPORT
AND EXPORT CONSTRAINTS
6. Oxfam, Dec. 2014: Three months on, vital reconstruction has barely begun as winter arrives: http://us7.campaign-archive1.com/?u=d7bf98037b5abfd4c69593c62&id=1efe40b2f9
7. Gisha, 170 tons of vegetables are stuck in Gaza because of a dispute between COGAT and the Ministry of Agriculture, Nov. 2014: http://gisha.org/updates/3743.
8. Gisha, Israel bans sale of Gaza strawberries in the West Bank, Jan. 2015: http://gisha.org/updates/3908.
9. Information provided by the Palestinian Agricultural Relief Committes (PARC), 2015.
10. This information was provided by the EWASH Advocacy Task Force, Jan. 2015.
Since the imposition of the blockade on Gaza in 2007,
exports from Gaza have fallen to around 2% of pre-
blockade levels.6
The blockade has almost completely
shut down commerce between the Gaza Strip, the
West Bank and Israel – the main markets for producers
in Gaza – with extremely limited exports to international
markets.
It is estimated that before the blockade, an average
of 850 trucks full of goods for sale exited Gaza every
month. In contrast, between January and November
2014, an average of 13 trucks exited the Strip per month.
Following the ceasefire agreement, the government of
Israel announced in October 2014 it would allow goods
from Gaza to be sold in the West Bank for the first time
since 2007. During November 2014, 53 trucks exited
Gaza, most of them containing agricultural produce.
This is a positive step, however, the Israeli NGO Gisha
reported that 10 trucks carrying 170 tons of vegetables
for sale in the West Bank and Saudi Arabia were
prevented from exiting the Strip in November.
According to the Israeli authorities, the reason was the
lack of personnel from the Israeli Ministry of Agriculture
to screen the trucks.7
Similarly, strawberry exports to the
West Bank only lasted between November 2014 and
January 2015, as the Israeli authorities prohibited such
exports after strawberries from Gaza were found in the
Israeli market.8
Despite the improvements, there is a serious lack of
consistency. The continuous restrictions on movement of
goods, along with access restrictions in the ARA, have
a destructive impact on the economy and livelihood
of Palestinians in Gaza – particularly farmers, as the
majority of the exports are agricultural products.
