Gaza economy has entered world's 'most severe crisis on record': UN report

Recovery and reconstruction needs reach $71.5B as more than 90% of working-age Gazans remain without work

Gaza's economy has entered the world's "most severe crisis on record," with recovery and reconstruction needs reaching $71.5 billion amid widespread destruction of productive capacity, according to a UN report. The report by the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) said the assessment was based on the peak-to-trough decline in real GDP per capita and the projected duration of recovery. Gaza's annual real GDP per capita stood at just $212, or $0.58 per day, in 2025, equivalent to just 17% of its already low 2022 level. Israeli military operations since October 2023 have left 92% of Gaza's economic establishments damaged or destroyed, "bringing productive activity to a near-total halt across all sectors," the report said. Agricultural and industrial output each plunged 94% compared with 2022, while construction output collapsed by 99%. The labor market has also been devastated, according to the report, with only 123,300 Gazans employed in 2025, leaving more than 90% of the working-age population without work. Prices in Gaza remained 274% above 2022 levels in 2025, with food prices "spiraling." Potatoes, for example, cost more than 20 times their pre-conflict level. Physical infrastructure damage was estimated at $35.2 billion, more than 2.5 times the pre-conflict real GDP of Gaza and the West Bank combined, alongside $22.7 billion in economic and social losses. UNCTAD said total recovery and reconstruction needs had reached $71.5 billion by early 2026 and "will continue to increase until a sustainable ceasefire is achieved." Gaza's share of the Palestinian economy had fallen below 4% by 2025, while GDP per capita stood at just 5% of the level in the occupied West Bank, down from near parity three decades ago.