Palestinian families living under poverty line could double due to coronavirus: minister

Palestinian Minister of Social Development Ahmad Majdalani told that tens of thousands of households in Palestine have dropped below the poverty line due to the recent closure of thousands of enterprises and businesses after the outbreak of COVID-19 virus and the strict measures to confront it.
The number of Palestinian households living in poverty is expected to rise to around 100,000 in the coming months, which is almost double the existing number, Majdalani said.
The Palestinian relative poverty line refers to a household with two adults and three children earning 691$ in monthly income, according to the 2017 data.
Majdalani noted that the government will need at least 64 million U.S. dollars immediately to provide financial aid for the poor families, the elderly and the people with disability.
Together with the decrease in local revenues and foreign aid, the forced closure of businesses and enterprises could exhaust the government's financial resources, the minister said.
Last week, Palestine declared the adoption of an austere emergency budget and financial restraints on government expenses in light of shrinking revenues due to the raging coronavirus.
Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Ishtaye said that his government expected to need 120 million U.S. dollars to cope with the pandemic.
Palestine has declared a state of emergency since March 5, under which strict preventive measures have been taken in various cities to curb the spread of the deadly virus.