Qarawat Bani Hassan Town Profile

Qarawat Bani Hassan Town Profile

Prepared by
The Applied Research Institute – Jerusalem
Funded by

Spanish Cooperation

2013

Palestinian Localities Study

Salfit Governorate

Acknowledgments

ARIJ hereby expresses its deep gratitude to the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation for Development (AECID) for their funding of this project.

ARIJ is grateful to the Palestinian officials in the ministries, municipalities, joint services councils, village committees and councils, and the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) for their assistance and cooperation with the project team members during the data collection process.

ARIJ also thanks all the staff who worked throughout the past couple of years towards the accomplishment of this work.

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Background

This report is part of a series of booklets, which contain compiled information about each city, town, and village in the Salfit Governorate. These booklets came as a result of a comprehensive study of all localities in Salfit Governorate, which aims at depicting the overall living conditions in the governorate and presenting developmental plans to assist in developing the livelihood of the population in the area. It was accomplished through the "Village Profiles and Needs Assessment;" the project funded by the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation for Development (AECID).

The "Village Profiles and Needs Assessment" was designed to study, investigate, analyze and document the socio-economic conditions and the needed programs and activities to mitigate the impact of the current unsecure political, economic and social conditions in Salfit Governorate.

The project's objectives are to survey, analyze, and document the available natural, human, socioeconomic and environmental resources, and the existing limitations and needs assessment for the development of the rural and marginalized areas in Salfit Governorate. In addition, the project aims at preparing strategic developmental programs and activities to mitigate the impact of the current political, social, and economic instability with the focus on the agricultural sector.

All locality profiles in Arabic and English are available online at http://vprofile.arij.org .

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Table of Contents

Location and Physical Characteristics ___________________________ 4

History _____________________________________________________________ 5

Religious and Archaeological Sites_______________________________ 6

Population _________________________________________________________ 6 Education__________________________________________________________ 7 Health Status ______________________________________________________ 8 Economic Activities _______________________________________________ 8 Agricultural Sector _______________________________________________ 10 Institutions and Services _________________________________________ 13

Infrastructure and Natural Resources __________________________ 13

Environmental Conditions _______________________________________ 15 Impact of the Israeli Occupation ________________________________ 16 Development Plans and Projects ________________________________ 22 Implemented Projects ____________________________________________ 22 Proposed Projects ________________________________________________ 22

Locality Development Priorities and Needs _____________________ 23

References: _______________________________________________________ 24

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Qarawat Bani Hassan Town Profile

Location and Physical Characteristics

Qarawat Bani Hassan is a Palestinian town in Salfit Governorate located 8.9 km north-west of Salfit City. Qarawat Bani Hassan is bordered by Deir Istiya and Haris villages to the east, Sarta to the south, Biddya town to the west, and Deir Istiya to the north (ARIJ-GIS, 2013) (See Map 1).

Map 1: Qarawat Bani Hassan location and borders

Source: ARIJ - GIS Unit, 2013.

Qarawat Bani Hassan is located at an altitude of 391 m above sea level with a mean annual rainfall of 611.6 mm. The average annual temperature is 19 C^oand the average annual humidity is approximately

61.6% (ARIJ-GIS, 2013).

Since 1996, Qarawat Bani Hassan has been governed by a Municipal Council which is currently administrated by 11 members appointed by the Palestinian National Authority (PNA). There are 8

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employees working in the council, which owns a permanent headquarters that is included within the „Joint Services Council of West Salfit.‟ The Council also owns a vehicle for the collection of solid waste

(Qarawat Bani Hassan Municipality, 2012).

It is the responsibility of the Municipal Council to provide a number of services to the residents of

Qarawat Bani Hassan, including (Qarawat Bani Hassan Municipality, 2012):

 The establishment and maintenance of the drinking water and electricity networks.  Waste collection, road construction, restoration, street cleaning and social development services.  Organization of construction and licensing processes.  Implementation of projects and studies for the town.  Organization of transportation.  Provision of educational kindergartens.

History

Qarawat Bani Hassan town was named in relation to a righteous man called Abu Muhammad Abdul Hamid ben Madd al Qarawani al Hassani descended from the Al Husniya tribes which were responsible for controlling and protecting the trade roads; from Jaffa Gate in Jerusalem until „Azzun village in the

northern West Bank. The word “Qarawat” is derived from the word “Qura” which means generosity or

good hospitality. The town was established in 1600 AD with its residents deriving from Al Husniya tribes whom are descendants of the Arabian Peninsula (Qarawat Bani Hassan Municipality, 2012).

Photo of Qarawat Bani Hassan

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Religious and Archaeological Sites

There are seven mosques in the town;Omar Ben al Khattab, Al Muhsineen, Al Hawqala, Al Junaid,

Othman Ben „Affan, Abu Bakr as Siddiq and Ali Ben Abi Talib Mosques. The town has several sites of

archaeological interest including: Al Burj Building, Mansura Palace, Sabbah Palace, Ad Darb House and Al Jame‟ Pool. One should note here that none of these sites are qualified for tourism (Qarawat Bani Hassan

Municipality, 2012) (See Map 2).

Map 2: Main locations in Qarawat Bani Hassan Town

Population Source: ARIJ - GIS Unit, 2013.

Population

According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), the total population of Qarawat Bani Hassan in 2007 was 3,752, of whom 1,979 were male and 1,773 female. There were additionally 669 households recorded as living in 732 housing units.

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Age Groups and Gender

The „General Census of Population and Housing‟ carried out by PCBS in 2007 showed the distribution of age groups in Qarawat Bani Hassan is as follows: 48.3% were less than 15 years of age, 48.9% were between 15 and 64 years of age, and 2.7% were 65 years of age or older. Data also showed that the sex ratio of males to females in the town is 111.6:100, meaning that males and females constitute 52.7% and 47.3% of the population, respectively.

Families

Qarawat Bani Hassan residents are from several families, including „Assi, Rayyan and Mir‟ie (Qarawat

Bani Hassan Municipality, 2012).

Immigration

The field survey conducted by ARIJ staff showed that around 50 people have left the town since Al

Aqsa Intifada in 2000 (Qarawat Bani Hassan Municipality, 2012).

Education

According to the results of the PCBS Population, Housing and Establishment Census-2007, the illiteracy rate among the local population is approximately 7%, of whom 77.4% are females. Of the literate population, 17.3% could only read and write, with no formal education, 27% had elementary education, 26.6% had preparatory education, 16% had secondary education, and 6.2% completed higher education. Table 1 shows the educational level in the town of Qarawat Bani Hassan by sex and educational attainment in 2007.

Table 1: Qarawat Bani Hassan population (10 years and above) by sex and educational attainment

Can

S

Ex
Illite- rate

Element- Preparat- Second-

Associate

Diploma

Higher

Un-

known

read

&

Bachelor

Master PhD

Total

ary

ory

ary

Diploma

write

MF

39
134

173

216 212

428

354 314

668

331 327

658

218 179

397

41 11

52

71 21

92

10

1

61

7

10

1

01

1
1,278 1,200 2,478

T

Source: PCBS, 2009.

There are four public schools in the town, all of which are run by the Palestinian Ministry of Higher

Education (Directorate of Education in Salfit, 2012) (see Table 2).

Table 2: Schools in Qarawat Bani Hassan by name, stage, sex, and supervising authority (2011/2012)

School Name

Supervising Authority

Government

Sex

Male

Qarawat Bani Hassan Boys‟ Secondary School

Qarawat Bani Hassan Boys‟ Elementary School Qarawat Bani Hassan Girls‟ Secondary Higher School Qarawat Bani Hassan Girls‟ Elementary School

Source: Directorate of Education in Salfit, 2012

Government

Male

Government

Female

Government

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In the town there are 1,333 students, 81 teachers, and 50 classes. The average number of students per teacher in the school is nearly 16, whilst the average number of students per class is approximately 27

(Directorate of Education in Salfit, 2012).

There are two kindergartens in Qarawat Bani Hassan town, all run by one private organization

(Directorate of Education in Salfit, 2012) (See table 3 below).

Table 3: Kindergartens in Qarawat Bani Hassan town by name and supervising authority

Name of Kindergarten

No. of Classes No. of Teachers Supervising Authority

The Modern Education Kindergarten Qarawat Bani Hassan Kindergarten

Source: Directorate of Education in Salfit, 2012

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34
Private Private

The educational sector in Qarawat Bani Hassan faces a number of obstacles, including (Qarawat Bani

Hassan Municipality, 2012):

 Students reaching the Girl‟s secondary school due to its removed location from residential areas.

 The lack of public services within the town, including transportation, which increases students‟ burden.

Health Status

Qarawat Bani Hassan has a governmental mother and child care center, a governmental general physician clinic, a private dental clinic and a private pharmacy. The town also has two ambulances; one is owned by the Red Crescent Society and the other is privately owned. In the absence of required health services or in emergencies, patients are transferred to Yasir Arafat Governmental Hospital in Salfit city (25 km away) or to the Medical Scientific Society in Biddya town (5 km away) (Qarawat Bani Hassan

Municipality, 2012).

The health sector in the town faces some obstacles and problems, principally (Qarawat Bani Hassan

Municipality, 2012):

 The lack of specialized physicians in the town.  The lack of a comprehensive health center that includes all medical services.

 The lack of residential physicians working all day in the town‟s clinic.

 The lack of an ambulance.

Economic Activities

The economy in Qarawat Bani Hassan is mainly dependent on the agricultural sector which absorbs approximately 40% of the town‟s workforce (Qarawat Bani Hassan Municipality, 2012) (See Figure 1).

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The results of a field survey conducted by the ARIJ team in 2012 for the distribution of labor by economic activity in Qarawat Bani Hassan are as follows:
 Agriculture sector (40%)  Industry (30%)  Trade sector (20%)  Services sector (5%)  Government or other employees sector (4%)  Israeli labor market (1%)

Figure 1: The distribution of labor force among main economic activities in Qarawat Bani Hassan

Source: Qarawat Bani Hassan Municipality, 2012

Qarawat Bani Hassan has 70 groceries, 4 fruits and vegetables stores, 2 bakeries, 2 butcheries, 10 service stores, 12 different professional workshops, 2 olive oil-presses and 2 workshops for the maintenance of air conditioning and cooling (Qarawat Bani Hassan Municipality, 2012).

In 2012, the unemployment rate in Qarawat Bani Hassan reached 15% and the groups most affected economically by the Israeli restrictions have been (Qarawat Bani Hassan Municipality, 2012):

 Agricultural workers.  Workers in the trade sector.  Industrial workers.  Former workers in Israel.  Workers in the services sector.

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Labor Force

According to the PCBS Population, Housing and Establishment Census-2007, 31.6% of Qarawat Bani Hassan labor force was economically active, of whom 94% were employed, 68.3% were not economically active, 54.5% were students, and 34.8% were housekeepers (See Table 4).

Table 4: Qarawat Bani Hassan population (10 years of age and above) by sex and employment status

Economically active

Non-economically active

Not working
& not looking
Sex
Un- employed
(never worked)
Not stated
Currently Unem- ployed

Total

Employ-

ed
Stud- House- Unable

Total

Others Total

ent

keeping to work

for work

682
55

737

25 0

25

17
5

22

447 475

922

0
588

588

78 69

147

75

12

22
1

23

02

2
MFT
724
60
784
554
1,138 1,692
1,278 1,200 2,478

M: Male; F: Female; T: Total.

Source: PCBS, 2009.

Agricultural Sector

Qarawat Bani Hassan has a total area of approximately 9,445 dunums of which 6,582 are „arable‟ land

and 553 dunums are registered as „residential‟ (See Table 5 and Map 3).

Table 5: Land use and land cover in Qarawat Bani Hassan town (area in dunum)

Area of
Settlements, Military Bases & Wall Zone
Agricultural area
(6,582)
Area of Industrial,
Spaces Commercial &
Transport Unit
Built up Area
Total Area
Inland water
Open
Forests

Permanent Green- Range- Arable

Crops

houses

lands

9,443

553

5,780

2

459

341

0

361

1,581

28

340

Source: ARIJ – GIS Unit, 2012.

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Map 3: Land use/land cover and Segregation Wall in Qarawat Bani Hassan Town

Source: ARIJ - GIS Unit, 2013.

Table 6 shows the different types of rain-fed and irrigated open-cultivated vegetables in Qarawat Bani Hassan. The most commonly cultivated crops within the area are tomatoes, squashes and cauliflowers.

Table 6: Total area of rain-fed and irrigated open cultivated vegetables in Qarawat Bani Hassan (area in dunums)
Fruity vegetables
Leafy vegetables
Other vegetables

Green legumes

Bulbs

Total Area

Rf.

15

Irr.

32

Rf.

0

Irr.

16

Rf.