The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) issued a press release on International Youth Day, occurring on August 12, 2016, reviewing the status of Palestinian youth.

According to the press release, the total population of Palestine was estimated at 4.82 million in mid-2016. Youth represented 30% of this total: 37% are adolescents aged (15-19) years and 63% are young adults aged (20-29) years.  While the sex ratio among youth is at 104.1 males to 100 females.

7 of 10 households in Palestine have at least one young person.

The 2015 census data on Palestinian youth shows that the percentage of households headed by a young person aged (15-29 years) reached 14%, 13% of which are in the West Bank and 17% in Gaza Strip. The data also showed that 72% of households have at least 1 young person; 71% in the West Bank and 74% in Gaza Strip.

41% of females aged (15-29) years are married

The Palestinian Youth Survey (2015) revealed that 68% of youth aged (15-29) years have not been married before, 4% were engaged for the first time, and 28% were married (16% males to 41% females), while 1%  were widowed, divorced or separated. The percentage of married youth reached 26% in the West Bank compared to 32% in the Gaza Strip.

Females aged (25-29) are the highest contributors to the total fertility rate

According to the results of the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey of 2014, the total fertility rate in Palestine declined to 4.1 births between (2011-2013) compared to 4.4 births in 2010.  On a regional level, the total fertility rate in the West Bank was 3.7 births in the years (2011-2013) compared to 4.5 births in the Gaza Strip for the same period.  Females aged (25-29) contribute to 30.1% of the total fertility rate, making them the highest contributors of all age groups.

4 out of 10 youth were unemployed during the 1st quarter of 2016

Labor force data for the 1st quarter of 2016 showed that 41% of youth aged (15-29) are economically active (employed and unemployed);40% of whom live in the West Bank and 42% in the Gaza Strip.

However, the youth unemployment rate reached 39%. The highest unemployment rate was among youth aged (20-24), reaching 43% in comparison with a rate of 39% for youth aged (25-29) and 35% for youth aged (15-19). The highest unemployment rate among youth who have not completed any grade level reached 55%.

The unemployment rate among youth graduates was 51% in the 1st quarter of 2016. The highest unemployment rate reached 64% among graduates of education and teacher training, while the lowest unemployment rate reached 25% among law graduates.

16% of youth have completed the transition from education to the labor market

In 2015, the survey of transition of youth from school to the labour market showed that 16% of youth aged (15-29) have completed the transition from education to the labor market and work in stable and permanent jobs. 84% of young people have moved out of the labor force, are unemployed, or work in non-permanent temporary jobs lasting less than 12 months.

More than half of the youth population aged (15-29) in Gaza reports interest in participating in an election event

According to Palestinian Youth Survey of 2015, 40% of youth aged (15-29) reported interest in participating in an elections event (29% in the West Bank, compared to 57% in Gaza Strip). 29% reported that they would probably participate, 13% said they would probably not participate and 18% said they definitely would not participate (16% in the West Bank and 21% in Gaza Strip)

39% of youth aged (15-29) were enrolled in education

In 2015, 39% of youth aged (15-29) were enrolled in education; 82% of those are within the age group (15-17) years, 46% are in the age group (18-22) years, and 9% in the age group (23-29) years.  Dropout rates (those who left the educational system before the completion of the educational stage attended) reached 34%; 41% of which are males and 27% are females.  Moreover, in the year 2013-2014, the dropout rate in secondary education reached 3.7% among youth aged (15-29) (4.2% males, 3.3% females).

Most youth who have attended higher education chose their university or college

Findings of the 2015 Youth Census Data showed that 88% of youth aged (17-29) who have attended higher education had chosen their university/college themselves (90% of those males to 87% females). On the other hand, 6% of youth in that same age group attended a university chosen for them by their family. Findings also show that 6% of youth in the same age group had chosen a university/college based on their general certificate score.

4 of 100 youth have difficulty/disability

The Palestinian Youth Survey (2015) showed that the percentage of youth aged (15-29) who face difficulty/ disability was 3.6%; 3.7% in the West Bank and 3.6% in the Gaza Strip. The percentage of males with difficulty/ disability was 4.9% compared to 2.3% of females.

2 of 10 male youth smoke

The Palestinian Youth Survey (2015) revealed that 24% of youth smoked, 30% of whom are in the West Bank and 14% in Gaza Strip. Gender variances were high with 41% of males smoking compared to 5% of females.

2 of 10 youth in Palestine participated in volunteer work

The Palestinian Youth Survey (2015) revealed that the percentage of youth aged (15-29) who participated in volunteer work in the year 2014 reached 20%. 11% of them participated in non-financial charity activities (helping the poor or hardship cases), while 7% contributed to community development activities, 5% to educational activities, 6% to fundraising and 1% in other volunteer work.

7 of 10 youth in Palestine use computers

According to the Palestinian Youth Survey, the percentage of youth aged (15-29) who use a computer reached 70% (75% in the West Bank, compared to 62% in the Gaza Strip). Of those 74% were males and 66% were females.

Data shows that male youth tend to use the Internet more than females and are therefore more familiar with it

Regarding knowledge and use of the Internet, the Palestinian Youth Survey revealed that 70% of youth aged (15-29) know of and use the Internet, while 23% of them were aware of it but did not use it. The percentage of youth, not aware of and not using this service reached 7% of total Palestinian youth. The percentage of youth who know of and use the Internet was 75% in the West Bank compared to 61% in the Gaza Strip; 75% of them were  males, while  65% were  females.

2 of 10 youth in Palestine desire to immigrate abroad

The Palestinian Youth Survey also revealed that 24% of youth aged (15-29) desire to migrate abroad and that the overall conditions in the Gaza Strip play a major role in increasing the percentage of youth desiring  to migrate abroad (37% in the Gaza Strip and 15% in the West Bank). It should be noted that young males have a greater tendency to think of immigration (29% of males, versus 18% of females).

6 of 10 youth in Palestine are considering temporary immigration

Results also show that 63% of youth (15-29 years) who wish to immigrate do not consider permanent immigration. They represented 73% in the West Bank and 56% in the Gaza Strip. The percentage of females exceeded the percentage of males in their preference for temporary immigration (62% of males, compared to 64% of females).