Updated Activity/Project Summary on Data Bases (Norway) January 1998
THEME & SHEPERD:
Databases, Norway

ACTIVITY / PROJECT:
STATUS/ DATE:

Short description here 1.

 Survey of Economic and Social Conditions for Occupied Territories by Fafo (Norway, Ford Foundation) Completed May 1993

2.

 First Oslo Intersessional Seminar on Data Bases (Norway) Completed September 1993
Support for Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (Norway, Germany, EU) Ongoing
Demographic Survey in Occupied Territories by Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics in cooperation with Fafo (EU) Completed February 1997
Update of the Fafo Study on Living Conditions in the Occupied Territories by Fafo (Norway) Completed June 1994
Jordan Living Conditions Survey by Jordan Department of Statistics in Cooperation with Fafo (Norway, Canada (IDRC/CIDA), Unicef) Ongoing
Study of Potential of UNRWA Administrative Data for Research on Palestinian Refugees by Fafo (Norway, UNRWA) Completed December 1994
Qualitative Study of Adaptation Strategies of Palestinian Refugees (RECASP I) by Fafo (Norway) Completed December 1994

9.

 Second Oslo Intersessional Seminar on Data Bases (Norway) Completed October 1994
Qualitative Study of Palestinian Refugees in Camps, in the Gulf States and Returnees by Fafo (Norway) Completed March1997
Inventory of Research on Palestinian Refugees by Fafo (Norway) Completed March 1997

12.

 Third Oslo Interesessional Seminar on Data Bases (Norway) Completed June 1996
Status Report on Data Bases and Highlights of Results according to RWG Themes (Norway) Ongoing
Rapid Living Conditions Appraisal, Design of Project Appraisal Instrument (Norway) Ongoing
Intersessional Expert Seminar on Data Bases in Aqaba, follow-up of Third Intersessional. Completed December 1997
Constructing Order: Palestinian Adaptations to Refugee Life.
Fafo-report no. 236/1997.		 Completed December 1997
Living Conditions Among Palestinian Refugees and Displaced in Jordan.
Fafo-report no. 237/1997.		 Completed December 1997
Developing Palestinian Society
Socio-economic trends and their implications for development strategies.
Fafo-report no. 242/1998		 Completed 1998

Specifications to the Refugee Working Group Activity/Project Summary by the Norwegian Shepherd (Data Bases):


Project 1: Survey of Economic and Social Conditions for Occupied Territories (FALCOT).
The Living Conditions Survey is completed, and published in English and Arabic. The data set is available from the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, and has been distributed to Palestinian research institutions. With funding from the Ford Foundation, FAFO has conducted a series of training courses for Palestinian academics. [back]

Project 3: Support for Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics.
The Palestinian Bureau of Statistics received its first institutional grant from Norway in 1993. Since then, the core of a fully fledged statistical institution has been built with support from various sources. The PCBS has undertaken a series of household surveys, among others the Demographic Survey, some of which shed light on the situation for refugees. [back]

Project 4: Demographic Survey in Occupied Territories.
The Demographic Survey was implemented by PCBS and FAFO, with funding from the EU. The sample of 15.000 households permits to construct basic demographic indicators on district level in the West Bank and Gaza, and all information can be broken down on refugee status. [back]

Project 5: Update of the Fafo Study on Living Conditions (FALUP).
The update of the economic component of the Living Conditions Survey (FALCOT) was completed in March 1994 and presented to the RWG in May 1994. [back]

Project 6: Jordan Living Conditions Survey (jlcs).
The Jordan Living Conditions Survey is undertaken by the Government of Jordan and implemented by the Jordan Department of Statistics in cooperation with Fafo. It is funded by UNICEF, with Norwegian funds, and by Canada (IDRC/CIDA). The fieldwork was completed in June 1996, and the first presentation of results took place in a seminar in Amman the 28 November 1996. The final report is due towards the end of 1997. [back]

Project 7: Study of Potential of UNRWA Administrative Data for research on Palestinian Refugees.
The study is completed and was presented to the RWG meeting in Antalya in December 1994. [back]

Project 8: Qualitative Study of Adaptation Strategies of Palestinian Refugees (RECASP).
The Refugee Camps Study Project was completed and presented at the second intersessional seminar in Oslo in October 1994, and issued to the RWG meeting in Antalya in December 1994. An extension of the project has been carried out as recommended by the Antalya meeting (see project 10 below). [back]

Project 10: Qualitative Study of Palestinian Refugees in Camps, in the Gulf States and Returnees (PALRESP). The Refugee Camps Study Project, phase II, was recommended by the Antalya Meeting, and was carried out by Fafo from March 1995 with funding from Norway. Some results were presented in the Third Oslo Intersessional Seminar in June 1996. [back]

Project 11: Inventory of Research on Palestinian Refugees (PALINVENT).
This project was recommended at the Antalya meeting, and has been carried out with Norwegian funding by Fafo since March 1995. The bibliography was presented at the RWG Plenary in Geneva in December 1995 and highlights of the draft report were presented in the Third Oslo Intersessional Seminar in June 1996. [back]

Project 13: Status Report on Data Bases and Highlights of Results According to RWG Themes.
In the Third Oslo Intersessional Seminar some delegates suggested to prepare a focused status report based on the material gathered in the Inventory of Research on Palestinian Refugees (project 11 above) and on further input provided by the various Shepherds in the RWG. Norway is considering to draft such a report to be presented for review by the Fourth Oslo Intersessional Seminar (planned). [back]

Project 14: Rapid Living Conditions Appraisal, Design of a Project Appraisal Instrument. In the Third Oslo Intersessional Seminar Norway suggested to prepare a survey tool to rapidly appraise living conditions within confined areas with a view to focus projects. The tool should provide a set of core indicators that are suitable for internal selection of vulnerable groups and for external comparison. Norway will pursue the preparation of a more detailed design and present it for review by the Fourth Oslo Intersessional Seminar (planned). The tool will then be made available for Shepherds or others for use in focusing projects. [back]

Project 15: Fourth Oslo Intersessional Seminar on Data Bases.
The Fourth Intersessional Seminar on Data Bases was held in Aqaba, Jordan, 3-4 December 1997. [back]
Sheperd's summary.

Project 16: Constructing Order: Palestinian Adaptations to Refugee Life.
Constructing Order explores how Palestinian refugees adapt to their situation and how they reconstruct a semblance of order in their lives. In three separate sections, the book focuses on how refugees have adapted to conditions of life in a Gaza refugee camp, labour migration to the Gulf and in returning to the West Bank. Anthropological and qualitative in nature, the book describes how Palestinians set about constructing their economic, social and cultural adaptations to the changing circumstances in which they live.

By Are Hovdenak, Jon Pedersen, Dag H. Tuastad and Elia Zureik. [back]

Project 17: Living Conditions Among Palestinian Refugees and Displaced in Jordan.
As a result of the war of 1948, Jordan was the country receiving the largest number of Palestinian refugees originating from the area that today is the State of Israel. The Palestinian refugees, together with the Palestinians displaced from the West Bank who fled to Jordan after the 1967 occupation, today make up 44 percent of the total population in Jordan. This study concludes that the vast majority of refugee households in Jordan have material and social conditions quite similar to other Jordanian households. The social network provided by the high number of refugees, and the fact that the refugees speak the same language as the inhabitants of the host country, have combined to produce this effect. In addition, the Jordanian authorities have played an important role by providing refugees with Jordanian citizenship and other rights. Nevertheless, refugees who live in UNRWA refugee camps are characterised by the clustering of poor living conditions.

The study is based on results from the Jordan Living Condition Survey, which was conducted in Jordan in 1996, as a co-operation between Department of Statistics in Amman, and Fafo.

By Marie Arneberg. [back]

Project 18: Developing Palestinian Society: Socio-economic trends and their implications for development strategies.
This report describes past trends in the economy of the West Bank and Gaza Strip and also project some of the trends into the near future. The population of the West Bank and Gaza Strip is rapidly growing. With the current slow development of the peace process, the public sector has expanded with support from international donors, but with little base in the private sector.

If the trends continue, the Palestinian economy will develop into a typical third world economy based on a large public sector and low productive informal sector activities.

Throughout the remainder of the negotiations period, the international community should continue to support the public sector in order to ensure stability in basic living conditions, including health care and education.

By Jon Pedersen and Rick Hooper (ed.). [back]

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