The Palestinian economy has experienced strong growth in recent years. This report examines the economic benefits of lifting the restrictions on movement and access, as well as other administrative obstacles, to Palestinian investment and economic activity in a region known as Area C. This...

This Country Climate and Development Report (CCDR) for the West Bank and Gaza examines the social and macroeconomic impacts of climate change under three alternative scenarios that reflect different levels of climate action and divergent economic growth trajectories. The scenario analysis builds...

Years of isolation and continuous conflicts have left Gaza's economic development far behind that of the West Bank. In 2022, per capita income in Gaza was only a quarter of that in the West Bank, and unemployment and poverty rates were much higher. This reflects much lower employment and...

This Selected Issues paper explores Palestinian labor market outcomes, dynamics, and policies. The Palestinian economy did not create enough jobs to absorb new labor market entrants. This even as labor force participation rates remained stubbornly low and among the lowest in the world for...

This is the latest in a series of economic reports by staff economists in the IMF’s Middle Eastern Department. This book discusses the latest economic data coming out of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, with a particular emphasis on growing demographic concerns. The work is enhanced by the...

For more than a decade, commercial banks in West Bank and Gaza (WBG) have struggled to manage buildups of excess physical Israeli shekel cash. Banks elsewhere typically manage the amount and currency composition of physical cash they hold in their vaults through transactions with other...

This paper reviews institutional arrangements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip (WBGS), the structural features of the economy, and macroeconomic developments and prospects during the 1990s. The paper discusses the technical assistance that the IMF staff has been providing in response to requests...