Gaza Industrial Sector Savaged By The Fuel Crisis

Where the Israeli siege could not completely destroy the Gaza industrial sector, the recent fuel crisis almost succeeded. The combined consequences over the last month have devastated the industrial sector, with over 1500 producers closing down production, and some 700 remaining on reduced hours.

The two biggest export sectors in Gaza industry prior to the imposition of the Israeli siege five years ago were textiles and furniture, the textile sector alone employing more than 29,000 workers. These sectors exported to Israel, which then marketed the products in Europe and North America. The imposition of the siege resulted in the loss of 80% of Gaza’s business, and according to the latest figures in 2012, there are now only 1977 workers employed in the textile sector.

The fuel crisis has compounded the problem – where producers were able to provide three days a week work for their employees prior to the crisis, some 1,500 businesses have been forced to cease production altogether, and the rest have reduced to one or two days a week. An easing of the crisis three days ago has led to a small improvement, but it is not sufficient.

“The industrial sector is certainly not working at full capacity,” Eng. Ahmed El Nabrees, project Co-ordinator of the Industrial Modernisation Centre said today. “With the new fuel supplies we are trying to get it restarted, but there is a limited amount of fuel, and it is not enough. We have just worked for one week to get enough fuel for only one day’s production,” he told me.

Although many hope that the latest agreement between the Egyptian and Gazan governments will improve the situation, it will take time as it requires converting the local power plant to run on gas. Many also fear that the Egyptian agreement will be subjected to political pressure, as they believe that the recent fuel crisis was manufactured by Israel and other players in the region to bring down the Hamas government.

Ahmed told me that workers cannot feed their families on the pay from one day a week, let alone buy the products they are producing, or even pay their power bills. But the power company must pay for the fuel from Israel in advance. Rather than cut off peoples’ power, as happens in New Zealand, the Hamas government is picking up the tab. “At least here, we put humanity before money,” commented Ahmed.

But how long that can continue is the question on everyone’s lips. It only takes 20 workers to meet 80% of the local demand for textiles, so exports are essential for the industrial sector – and Gazan workers - to survive.

And that can only happen when the siege is lifted.

ENDS

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