The Agricultural Economy in the Gaza Strip: An Analytical Approach Under Compounded Crises

Unpublished working paper, prepared during postgraduate study at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies.

The full text is available on request — I am glad to send it to researchers who need it, via the contact page.

Abstract

This paper analyses the state of the agricultural economy in the Gaza Strip as a pillar of food security and of economic and social development under conditions of occupation and blockade.

It starts from the problem of an inability to convert latent agricultural potential into a resilient development lever, given compounding geographic, political and environmental constraints, fragmented landholdings, and the failure of uniform agricultural policy.

Method

The study uses descriptive analysis of aggregate agricultural indicators — economic, geographic and spatial — with statistical comparisons centred on the 2010 and 2021 censuses.

Findings

Shifting production patterns: declining commitment to long-cycle cultivation (fruit trees and cattle) in favour of quick-return activity (vegetables and poultry) — a sign of fragile agricultural investment and a forced response to the absence of stability rather than a free economic choice.

Spatial disparities: geographic analysis reveals differences between Gaza's governorates in crop type, holding patterns and market integration — evidence of no regional policy that accounts for spatial specificity.

Diagnosis: the sector's challenges are not temporary obstacles but structural problems, requiring a re-reading of the agricultural-economic approach that combines quantitative and qualitative analysis, activates decentralised agricultural policy attentive to soil, water and security conditions, and secures rights of tenure and production.

Conclusion

The study concludes that developing Gaza's agricultural sector is a strategic entry point for economic cohesion, requiring integrated coordination between government bodies, civil society and international organisations.