Beit Liqya Town Profile
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Beit Liqya Town Profile Prepared by The Applied Research Institute – Jerusalem Funded by Spanish Cooperation 2012 Palestinian Localities Study Ramallah 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. 1 Palestinian Localities Study Ramallah Governorate Background This report is part of a series of booklets, which contain compiled information about each city, village, and town in the Ramallah Governorate. These booklets came as a result of a comprehensive study of all villages in Ramallah 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 the Ramallah 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 the Ramallah 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 village profiles in Arabic and English are available online at http://vprofile.arij.org. 2 Palestinian Localities Study Ramallah Governorate Table of Content Location and Physical Characteristics ___________________________________________ 4 History ____________________________________________________________________ 5 Religious and Archaeological Sites _____________________________________________ 6 Population _________________________________________________________________ 6 Education _________________________________________________________________ 7 Health Status _______________________________________________________________ 8 Economic Activities __________________________________________________________ 9 Agricultural Sector _________________________________________________________ 11 Institutions and Services _____________________________________________________ 13 Infrastructure and Natural Resources __________________________________________ 14 Environmental Conditions ___________________________________________________ 16 Impact of the Israeli Occupation ______________________________________________ 16 Development Plans and Projects ______________________________________________ 19 Implemented Projects _______________________________________________________ 19 Proposed Projects __________________________________________________________ 19 Locality Development Priorities and Needs ______________________________________ 20 References: _______________________________________________________________ 21 3 Palestinian Localities Study Ramallah Governorate Beit Liqya Town Profile Location and Physical Characteristics Beit Liqya is a Palestinian town in Ramallah Governorate located 13.5km southwest of Ramallah City. Beit Liqya is bordered by Beit ‘Anan in Jerusalem Governorate and Beit ‘Ur al Foqa territories to the east, Kharbatha al Misbah village to the north, Beit Sira and Beit Nuba villages’ territories to the west, and Beit Nuba territories and Kharayib Umm al Lahim territories (in Jerusalem Governorate) to the south (See Map 1). Map 1: Beit Liqya location and borders Source: ARIJ - GIS Unit, 2012. Beit Liqya is located at an altitude of 289m above sea level with a mean annual rainfall of 579.4mm. The average annual temperature is 18 o C and the average annual humidity is around 61% (ARIJ GIS, 2010). 4 Palestinian Localities Study Ramallah Governorate Since 1997, Beit Liqya has been governed by a municipal council included within the Joint Services Council of Ni’lin. The Municipal Council is currently administrated by 11 members, with an additional 7 employees. The municipality owns a permanent headquarters, a vehicle to collect solid waste, a tractor, 5 water and 3 electricity maintenance devices, and a metal detector. It is the responsibility of the Municipality to provide a number of services to the residents of Beit Liqya, including: Establishing and managing the drinking water network. Solid waste collection, road construction and restoration, and street cleaning. Implementation of projects and case studies for the town. Organization of construction and licensing processes. Protection of governmental property sites in the town. Provision of an ambulance. Provision of headquarters for governmental services, such as post and security divisions. Provision of means of transportations. History There are a number of claims regarding the etymology of Beit Liqua. Some say that Beit Liqya (literally ‘the meeting house’) was named after a man named Al Liqyani, whereas others claim that it was an ancient meeting place for Islamic army leaders. However, what is historically agreed upon is the fact that the town dates back to 1908 and its residents are originally Canaanites (Beit Liqya Municipality, 2010). Photo of Beit Liqya 5 Palestinian Localities Study Ramallah Governorate Religious and Archaeological Sites In terms of religious establishments, there are four mosques in the town, Beit Liqya old Mosque, Abu Tookh, As Saliheen and Al Luqyani Mosques (Beit Liqya Municipality, 2010) (See Map 2). There are several sites of archaeological interest in Beit Liqya, Al Luqyani Shrine, Khirbet Shibli, Khirbet Beit Nushef and Khirbet Dar ‘Assi (Beit Liqya Municipality, 2010). There are also other khirabs, including Khirbet Na’eer, Khirbet Thanab el Kalb, Khirbet Judeira and Khirbet al Breij (Al Dabbagh, 1991) (See Map 2). Map 2: Main locations in Beit Liqya Town Source: ARIJ - GIS Unit, 2012. Population According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), the total population of Beit Liqya in 2007 was 7,247, of whom 3,676 were male and 3,571 female. There were 1 302 households living in 1 470 housing units. 6 Palestinian Localities Study Ramallah Governorate Age Groups and Gender The General Census of Population and Housing carried out by PCBS in 2007 showed the distribution of age groups in Beit Liqya was as follows: 40.3% were less than 15 years of age, 55.7% were between 15 and 64 years of age, whilst 2 8% were 65 years of age or older. Data showed that the sex ratio of males to females in the town is 103:100, meaning that males and females constitute 50.7% and 49.3% of the population respectively. Families Beit Liqya residents are from several families, mainly the Mousa, Mafarja, Bader and ‘Assi families (Beit Liqya Municipality, 2010). Education According to the results of the PCBS Population, Housing and Establishment Census-2007, the illiteracy rate among Beit Liqya population is about 8.5%, of whom 84.4% are female. Of the literate population, 13.2% could read and write, with no formal education 24.4% had elementary education, 34.5% had preparatory education, 11.8% had secondary education, and 7.4% had completed higher education. Table 1 shows the educational level in the town of Beit Liqya by sex and educational attainment in 2007. Table 1: Beit Liqya population (10 years and above) by sex and educational attainment S Can Associate Higher Maste E Illiterate read & Elementary Preparatory Secondary Bachelor PhD Unknown Total Diploma Diploma r x write M 69 299 733 967 351 52 139 1 14 - 4 2,629 F 374 393 540 836 268 56 121 - 2 - 7 2,597 T 443 692 1,273 1,803 619 108 260 1 16 - 11 5,226 Source: PCBS, 2009. Population, Housing and Establishment Census-2007, Final Results There were five public schools in Beit Liqya in 2011; all were run by the Palestinian Ministry of Higher Education (MoHE). There are no kindergartens run by the Ministry of Higher Education (see Table 2) (Directorate of Education in Ramallah, 2010). In the town (in 2009) there were 2,231 students, 113 teachers, and 71 classes (Directorate of Education in Ramallah, 2011). The average number of students per teacher in the school was nearly 20, and the average number of students per class is approximately 31. 7 Palestinian Localities Study Ramallah Governorate Table 2: Schools in Beit Liqya by name, stage, sex, and supervising authority School Name Supervising Authority Sex Beit Liqya Girls High School Female Beit Liqya Boys High School Male Beit Liqya Boys Elementary School Government Male Abu Obeida Girls Elementary School Female Al_Farouq Boys Elementary Higher School Male Source: Directorate of Education in Ramallah, 2011 The educational sector in Beit Liqya faces some obstacles, mainly the lack of classrooms in the girls’ schools (Beit Liqya Municipality, 2010). Health Status There are several