Rebuilding Gaza may cost more than $50B: World Bank Joint Assessment – Country
More than $50 billion is needed to rebuild Gaza after the 15-month Israel-Hamas conflict in the Palestinian enclave, according to an assessment released by the United Nations, the EU and the World Bank on Tuesday.
Temporary Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment (IRDNA) says recovery and reconstruction will take $53.2 billion over the next 10 years, and $20 billion in the first three.
According to the Israeli Sors, Israel's campaign in Gaza is in response to an attack led by Islamic Hamas on October 7, 2023, in which 1,200 people were killed and more than 250 were taken hostage. According to the Hamas-operated Health Ministry, Israel's operation killed more than 48,000 people and left behind ruins.
Years of reconstruction work, including the removal of unexploded ordinances and millions of tons of ruins.
The report released the report in a fragile ceasefire that began last month, warning that there is no conditions for large-scale recovery and reconstruction efforts to start in place due to the lack of a post-conflict enclave operation and what security arrangements have been made.
“The speed, scale and scope of recovery will be shaped by these conditions,” it said.
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More than 292,000 homes have been destroyed or damaged, 95% of hospitals are non-functional, while local economy earns 83%.
It said that repairing damage to buildings and other infrastructure, including housing, would require more than half of the total estimated cost of reconstruction losses or $29.9 billion in total, which would require about $15.2 billion in reconstruction.
It said another $19.1 billion is needed to compensate for social and economic losses, including social and economic losses that have been damaged by health, education, business and the industry in conflict.
– Reports by Emma Farge and James Mackenzieiting, Jan Harvey and Francis Kerry
