Abstract
The occupied Palestinian territories of West Bank and Gaza Strip are currently experiencing many challenges in the provision of infrastructure services for their inhabitants. This includes an undersupply of infrastructure services across multiple sectors – an issue exacerbated by population growth, increasing urbanisation, economic growth and climate change. We address this challenge by providing a systems-based assessment of Palestine's infrastructure requirements and identifying broad strategies for how those needs might be met. This assessment involved four key components including: 1) defining and assessing the current system and planned infrastructure investments; 2) assessing potential future demand for infrastructure services; 3) identifying alternative strategies for future infrastructure provision beyond planned investments; and 4) analysing the performance of each strategy against a series of key performance indicators. Results from the assessment highlight the magnitude of the current and future need for urgent infrastructure investment in Palestine. The most immediate need is to alleviate the water crises in Gaza Strip, which will require at least twice as much water infrastructure investment over the coming decade than is currently in the pipeline, even if the goal is only to achieve the most basic World Health Organisation water availability requirements. To move beyond this protracted state of crises will then require a doubling of investments across all sectors to bring Palestine up to the standards of services already enjoyed by its neighbours. Such investments can have even greater impact on delivery of infrastructure services through the strategic use of interdependencies between infrastructure sectors, such as water re-use and energy-from-waste. In the pursuit of global sustainable development, the systems-based approach presented here provides an important first step in the assessment of infrastructure needs and opportunities for any country. It is particularly important for states like Palestine where key resources, such as water and energy, are so acutely constrained.
Highlights
Infrastructure is comprised of those basic physical and organisational structures, facilities and services that provide the foundation for economic productivity, connecting humans with their environment and allowing cities and countries to function
The methodological framework is applied here through four key steps presented stylistic in Figure 2: 1) Evaluate the current infrastructure system and any planned investments; 2) Assess the potential future requirements for infrastructure by developing scenarios of key drivers of demand for infrastructure services; 3) Devise of a small number of alternatives strategies for delivering infrastructure services to meet the demands presented by each scenario; 4) Apply system models to produce performance indicators to assess the performance of each strategy over the scenarios of uncertainty
With quantities ranging from 700 mm (Tulkarm) to 200 mm (Jericho) in 2015, while potential evaporation levels are high, with Jericho recording the highest monthly average of 195 mm (PCBS, 2015b, e)
Summary
Infrastructure is comprised of those basic physical and organisational structures, facilities and services that provide the foundation for economic productivity, connecting humans with their environment and allowing cities and countries to function. It augments human welfare through the provision of basic needs such as water, energy and waste management, and provides trade, mobility and access to services through transport and digital communications. The occupied Palestinian territories of West Bank and Gaza Strip are experiencing many ongoing challenges in the provision of infrastructure services for their inhabitants. While the provision of infrastructure can enhance social wellbeing, the lack of such infrastructure services can lead to declining health and wellbeing, diminished economic productivity and reduced social freedom
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