72,000 West Bank Farm Families Need Urgent Aid
Income Losses Push West Bank Farmers into Crisis
Jerusalem/Cairo: More than 72,000 farming and herding families in the occupied West Bank now require urgent emergency agricultural assistance, according to a new survey by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), underscoring the scale of economic and livelihood distress facing rural communities amid prolonged instability.
The findings, released today, show that nearly two-thirds of all agricultural families in the West Bank have been pushed into acute vulnerability, with around 90 per cent reporting recent income losses linked to sharp declines in crop and livestock production as well as reduced sales. The estimates are based on FAO’s Data in Emergencies (DIEM) survey conducted between July and August 2025.
Agriculture continues to play a central role in sustaining livelihoods in the West Bank. Of the roughly 700,000 families living in the territory, according to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, an estimated 115,000 depend on agriculture for income and food security, making the sector a critical buffer against wider economic shocks.
The survey, funded by the European Union and covering more than 1,500 households, provides one of the most detailed assessments to date of how the conflict in the Gaza Strip and related developments have affected farming and herding families in the West Bank. Respondents included crop producers, livestock holders and households engaged in both activities.
According to the survey, nearly nine out of ten agricultural families—about 100,000 households—have experienced at least one acute shock in recent months. The most frequently reported shocks were conflict-related violence, rising living costs and job losses, all of which have compounded pressures on already fragile rural livelihoods.
The data also point to the collapse of off-farm income sources that many households previously relied on. Before October 2023, around 41 per cent of respondents reported working in Israel or in Israeli settlements. Following the outbreak of the conflict, 91 per cent of those workers lost their jobs, and fewer than half have since been able to secure alternative employment, largely within the agricultural sector itself, at a time when farming conditions have deteriorated.
Families surveyed reported multiple operational constraints, including restricted access to water, limitations on movement and land use, shortages of affordable agricultural inputs, and sharply rising fuel and transport costs. These constraints have made it increasingly difficult for farmers and herders to sustain production even as dependence on agriculture grows.
Despite these challenges, FAO said agriculture remains one of the most effective pathways for households to access food and generate income under current conditions. Rein Paulsen, Director of FAO’s Office of Emergencies and Resilience, said the survey’s findings clearly indicate the need for urgent support, both in cash and in-kind, to help families cope with income losses driven by violence, economic contraction and disruptions to livelihoods.
Paulsen said timely emergency assistance to restore productive capacity could help avert a deeper crisis. He identified inputs such as seeds, fertilisers, drought-tolerant crops, veterinary kits, water tanks, animal shelters and dairy processing tools as critical to sustaining livelihoods and protecting productive assets. He also stressed the need for unimpeded humanitarian access to ensure aid reaches affected families without delay, alongside adequate funding to prevent further deterioration.
The survey concludes that without immediate agricultural support, many West Bank farming and herding households risk sliding further into food insecurity and long-term livelihood erosion, even as agriculture remains one of the few remaining economic anchors in the territory.
– global bihari bureau
