Ramallah – Ma’an – A Palestinian poll showed a quarter of Palestinians are considering emigrating from their homeland. For obvious reasons related to the economic, political and security conditions. According to the survey, the demand for immigration is higher in the Gaza Strip compared to the West Bank (31% and 21%, respectively).

On the eve of October 7, about a third in the Gaza Strip and a fifth in the West Bank said they were considering emigrating from Palestine. The main drivers appear to be economic, political, educational, security, and concerns about corruption. The most preferred destination for immigration is Trkiye, followed by Germany, Canada, the United States and Qatar.

Thinking about emigrating from Palestine:

A quarter of Palestinians say they are considering emigrating from their homeland. For obvious reasons of economic and political conditions, the demand for emigration is higher in the Gaza Strip than in the West Bank (31% and 21% respectively). The overall results are similar to thos
e obtained in the seventh round of the Barometer in 2021, although there are slight differences when looking at the West Bank and Gaza Strip separately, as shown in the figure below.

As we found in previous rounds, the demand for migration is highest among men and young people. It is also worth noting that while the difference between this demand in the West Bank versus the Gaza Strip is only 10 percentage points, it increases significantly when looking at specific groups in the two regions:

Gender: As the table below shows, men in the Gaza Strip are more likely to seek immigration than men in the West Bank, 38% and 21% respectively, a difference of 17 percentage points.

Age: Also, youth in the Gaza Strip are more likely to seek immigration compared to youth in the West Bank, where their percentage is 44% compared to 28%, respectively, i.e. a difference of 16 points.

Education: Surprisingly, while education plays a large role in influencing immigration demand in the West Bank, it is much less important in
the Gaza Strip. The higher the education among West Bank residents, the higher the demand for immigration (29% among those with an educational level Above Tawjihi and 17% among those with an education level up to Tawjihi). As for the Gaza Strip, the less educated are more interested in immigration than the more educated, 33% and 28%, respectively.

Voting in elections :

It should also be noted that those who intend to vote for third parties are more likely than others to seek immigration. Moreover, in the West Bank, those who intend to vote for Hamas are slightly more likely than those who intend to vote for Fatah to seek immigration. The opposite is true in the Gaza Strip, where those who will vote for Fatah are more likely to emigrate compared to those who will vote for Hamas, 31% and 14%, respectively. Finally, Gazans who say they will not vote for any electoral list and those who say they will not participate in the elections are more likely to seek immigration than those who intend to vote for Hamas or
Fatah.

Reasons driving migration:

When asked about the reasons for migration, the largest percentage (45%) said that they were economic reasons, as a majority of Gazans answered, amounting to 54%, compared to only 37% among residents of the West Bank. The second and third reasons, which are ‘political’ reasons or educational opportunities, received the same percentage (13% each). For the residents of the West Bank, political reasons came in second place, as 19% indicated this, while only 5% of the residents of the Gaza Strip indicated this. Searching for educational opportunities was the second reason for residents of the Gaza Strip, mentioned by twice the percentage of West Bank residents (18% and 9%, respectively). The fourth reason cited by respondents was security, cited by 12% of all Palestinians, but with a higher percentage in the West Bank compared to the Gaza Strip, 16% and 7% respectively. At the time of the survey, residents of the West Bank were suffering from Israeli settler violence, a violenc
e that gained great momentum in 2023 after the formation of one of the most religious and nationalist right-wing governments in the entire history of Israel. The fifth reason cited by 10% of respondents is corruption, as indicated by a larger percentage of the population of the West Bank compared to the population of the Gaza Strip, 12% and 7%, respectively.

It is worth noting that in the seventh session of the Barometer, in November 2021, a majority of 56% stated that they were considering migration for economic reasons, followed by ‘political’ reasons indicated by a percentage of 14%. As for educational reasons, 9% mentioned them, 8% mentioned security reasons, and 4% indicated concerns about corruption.

Top five destinations for immigration:

When asked about the most preferred destination for immigration, the first country chosen, in both the West Bank and Gaza Strip, was Turkey, as was the case in the seventh round, followed by Germany, Canada, the United States and Qatar. Two years earlier, in the sev
enth cycle, the United States came in second place followed by Canada, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar. Other countries selected in the current cycle included the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Australia and several Western European countries. It is worth noting, as shown in the figure below, that residents of the Gaza Strip were more likely than residents of the West Bank to choose Germany second, while the United States came in second place in the West Bank.

) Remittances from family members living abroad:

When asked whether their families receive remittances from any immediate or extended family members living abroad, the vast majority of Palestinians, 88%, reported, just as was the case in 2021, that they do not receive any remittances. All other results for 2023 were almost identical to those reported in 2021 with 3% reporting that they receive remittances on a monthly basis, 5% receiving remittances several times a year, and 4% once a year. The results indicate that residents of the Gaza Strip
are the largest recipients of remittances compared to residents of the West Bank (20% and 6%, respectively).

Supporting the rights of foreign domestic workers in Palestine:

We asked survey participants about the rights of foreign domestic workers in Palestine. The poll found that more than three-quarters of Palestinians strongly support or somewhat support a law guaranteeing the right of foreign domestic workers in Palestine to always possess their passports, and we found 20% who oppose or strongly oppose this. Support for this law is slightly higher in the Gaza Strip compared to the West Bank (80% versus 74%, respectively).

Also, 90% support or strongly support a law guaranteeing the right of foreign domestic workers in Palestine to have one day off per week, and 8% oppose this. West Bank residents are more likely than Gaza Strip residents to strongly support this law (64% and 45%, respectively).

A similar percentage (88%) somewhat or strongly supports a law guaranteeing the right of these workers to hav
e a bank account in which they receive their salaries, while a percentage of 9% opposes this. Here too, residents of the West Bank are more likely than residents of the Gaza Strip to strongly support this law (61% and 47%, respectively).

Source: Maan News Agency