Ramallah - Ma’an - The Central Bureau of Statistics said, “The number of elderly people in Palestine reached about 313 thousand, or 6% of the population, in mid-2023, with 206 thousand elderly people (6%) in the West Bank, and 107 thousand (5 %) in the Gaza Strip.
The statistics added in a statement issued today, Sunday, on the occasion of the International Day of the Elderly, that despite the expected increase in the number of elderly people in Palestine during the coming years, their percentage is expected to remain low, as it will not exceed 6% during the years of the current decade, while it is possible This percentage will begin to rise after the middle of the next decade.
The number of elderly males in Palestine by mid-2023 reached about 152 thousand individuals, representing about 6% of the total males, compared to 161 thousand females, representing 6.0% of the total females, with a sex ratio of 95 males for every 100 females.
He said that 24% of families are headed by the elderly in 2022, 25% in the West Bank and 21% in the Gaza Strip, noting that the average size of families headed by the elderly is usually relatively small, as the average size of the family headed by the elderly in Palestine reached 3.4 An individual.
He pointed out that 92% of elderly males in Palestine are married, compared to 48% of married females, and the percentage of widows reached 7% among elderly males compared to 42% among females in 2022.
Knowing that the percentage of widows among elderly males in 2007 in Palestine was 8%, compared to 43% among elderly females.
About 71% of the elderly suffer from chronic diseases, about 72% in the West Bank compared to 69% in the Gaza Strip. This percentage reached about 66% among males and 76% among females.
According to the statement, about 21% of the elderly are smokers, as this percentage reached about 38% among the elderly males, and about 5% among the elderly women are smokers, and the percentage of the elderly who smoke in the West Bank was about 26% (about 45% among the males). 8% among females), and about 12% of the elderly in the Gaza Strip are smokers (about 25% among males and 1% among females).
The percentage of the elderly who completed an intermediate diploma or higher did not exceed 17% for the year 2022, while about 30% of the elderly in Palestine did not complete any level of education (illiterate/mm) (19% for males and 41% for females).
Educational status data for the year 2022 showed that there is a clear difference between males and females in educational attainment, as the percentage of elderly males who completed an intermediate diploma or higher in Palestine reached 26%, while it decreased among elderly females to reach only 10%, knowing that The percentage of individuals 18 years and over who hold an intermediate diploma or higher in Palestine is 26% of the total population 18 years and over (24% for males and 29% for females).
The labor force participation rate among the elderly reached 15% in 2022, distributed by 20% in the West Bank compared to 6% in the Gaza Strip.
About 79% of the elderly (60 years and over) will own a cell phone in Palestine in 2022, 83% in the West Bank and 72% in the Gaza Strip, with a gap between the sexes of the elderly in the percentage of cell phone ownership, as the percentage among males was About 87% compared to 72% for females.
While the percentage of elderly people who own a smartphone reached about 55% in Palestine in 2022, 64% in the West Bank and 39% in the Gaza Strip, and in terms of gender, this percentage among elderly males reached about 58% and among females. The elderly are about 53%.
Data indicate that the percentage of adults who used the Internet reached about 56% in Palestine in 2022, 62% in the West Bank and 45% in the Gaza Strip. In terms of gender, this percentage among males was about 61% compared to 52% for females.
Source: Maan News Agency