Israeli restrictions cost Palestinian 3.4 bln USD per year: WB report

English>>World

Editor's Pick

Israeli restrictions cost Palestinian 3.4 bln USD per year: WB report

(Xinhua) 20:24, October 08, 2013

Email|Print|Comments

twitter

facebook

Sina Microblog

Palestinian economy could expand by 35 percent if Israel lifted the restrictions on Palestinians access to two thirds of the West Bank which it controls, a report released Tuesday by the World Bank (WB) shows.

The report said "More than half the land in the West Bank, much of it agricultural and resource rich, is inaccessible to Palestinians," adding "The first comprehensive study of the potential impact of this 'restricted land' sets the current loss to the Palestinian economy at about 3.4 billion U.S. dollars."

Freeing economic activity in the West Bank would have a high impact on "the development of businesses in agriculture and Dead Sea minerals exploitation, stone mining and quarrying, construction, tourism and telecommunications," the report said.

"Other sectors would be able to benefit from improvements in the quality, the cost of infrastructure and increased demand for goods and services," it added.

The report comes two weeks after the U.S.-Mideast Quartet plan to restore Palestinian economy was published. The "Economic Initiative for Palestine" aims to boost the economy through a series of investment projects over a time period of three years.

The International Monetary Fund's forecast Palestinian growth would decrease from last year's 5.9 percent to 4.5 percent this year.

（Editor：WangXin、Hongyu）