Table 2.7: Palestinian Refugees’ and IDPs’ Labor Force Participation by Region, End of 2021 Percentage Total Labor Force Participation Country Percentage Participation for Women Unemployment Rate Jordan266 38.1 13.5 19.3 Lebanon 42.5 20.8 14.5 267 Syria268 43.0 15.7 10.6 269 West Bank 45.5 18.3 26.4 Gaza Strip270 39.8 19.3 46.9 64.7 51.1 5.0 Palestine 271 1948 These low rates of workforce participation are compounded by high rates of unemployment among those who are active in the labor market. According to the World Bank, unemployment in the oPt is the fourth highest rate in the world272 (26.4 percent for total population), with Gaza experiencing excessively high rates (46.9 percent).273 Although labor force participation rates for refugees are on a par with non-refugees in the oPt, their unemployment rates are significantly higher (about 35 percent for refugees and 21 percent for non-refugees).274 This is, in part, due to the fact that unemployment overall is significantly worse in Gaza, where most of the population are refugees. However, in general, refugees in the West Bank (16 percent unemployment for refugees, 13 percent for males and 30 percent for females, versus 15 percent for non-refugees) and Gaza (47 percent for refugees, 43 percent for males and 63 percent for females, versus 46 percent for non-refugees) fare worse than non-refugees.275 According to the General Population Census in the Camps and Palestinian Communities in Lebanon conducted in 2017 by the PCBS, the unemployment rate for Palestinian refugees residing in Lebanon aged 15-19 years was at 43.7 percent, whilst for those aged between 20-29 years, the unemployment rate was 28.5 percent.276 Overall, from the 51,393 Palestinian refugees 266 “Unemployment refers to the share of the labor force that is without work but available for and seeking employment. Definitions of labor force and unemployment differ by country”. The World Bank, ‘Unemployment, total (% of total labor force)’ (ILO, June 2022) [hereinafter World Bank, Unemployment] <https://data.albankaldawli.org/indicator/ SL.UEM.TOTL.ZS>. Data represents the estimation for the entire population of Jordan; see World Bank Labor Force Participation Rate (n 265). 267 Data represents the estimation for the entire population of Lebanon; see World Bank Labor Force Participation Rate (n 265). 268 Data represents the estimation for the entire population of Syria; see ibid. 269 PCBS, Labor Force Survey (n 262). 270 Ibid. 271 This number reflects the labor force of the entire Palestinian population in 1948 Palestine, including IDPs. See PCBS, Statistical Yearbook 2021 (n 216). 272 World Bank, Unemployment (n 266). 273 PCBS, Labor Force Survey (n 262). 274 Ibid. 275 Ibid. 276 PCBS, ‘New census: 174422 Palestinian refugees in Lebanon’ (PCBS, 21 December 2017) <http://www.pcbs.gov.ps/ post.aspx?lang=en&ItemID=3013> accessed 3 October 2022. 56