Water Wars: Ethiopia and Kenya
Notable Entry, Interactive Narratives. 2008 Knight-Batten Awards for Innovations in Journalism.
Pulitzer Gateway: Water Wars
Visit the interactive Water Wars Web Portal, sponsored by the Pulitzer Center On Crisis Reporting.
Kibera: Not a Drop to Drink
The long rainy season in Kenya has begun and sudden storms regularly burst over Nairobi. Many welcome the downpours, which signal the end of another dry summer and wash the steamy crowded capital clean each morning.
As featured in Women's eNews, 1h2o.org, and Living on Earth. Produced in association with the Pulitzer Center On Crisis Reporting.
Sign up for E-News.
Country Fact Sheets from the CLP
Because we believe that good journalism must be contextualized, we've decided to share with our readers some of the more interesting and lesser known facts about the countries we've reported on. While these are in no way comprehensive descriptions of these complex places, this is the information that we've found most helpful in placing these countries in a global framework and underscoring the broader implications of the issues we've covered. In developing these Fact Sheets, we've worked to incorporate both the official facts and statistics reported by government sources as well as our own observations through reporting in each country. If you have any suggestions or requests for information you'd like to see included, write to us at info@clpmag.org
Israel
Israel, a country founded after World War II as a refuge for European Jews, is small in size but big in political significance in the region. Culturally a European country in the middle of the Arab world, its economy is on the same scale as that of Spain, in contrast with most of its developing neighbors. Israel continues to be a destination point for many Jews, and increasingly also for people seeking economic opportunity. Immigration from Russia is particularly high.
Size: Slightly smaller than New Jersey.
Population: About 6.3 million, including about 187,000 Israeli settlers in the West Bank, about 20,000 in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, and fewer than 177,000 in East Jerusalem. At current rates, Israel's population will grow to 8 million within 20 years. It is interesting to note that the Palestinian population, currently just over half the size of the Israeli population, will "catch up" in size in 20 years if current growth rates continue, something that poses a threat to Israel's status as a Jewish state.
Languages Spoken: Hebrew is the official language, with Arabic used officially for the Arab minority. English is the most commonly used foreign language.
Type of Government: Government Israel is a Parliamentary Democracy. It ranks well on the corruption index, at 28 of 158, a ranking it shares with Oman. Israel has compulsory military service, which requires that all Jews (and Druze, a minority Islamic sect) perform military service at age 17. Men are required to serve 36 months; women 21. Members of other religions are eligible for voluntary service.
Religion: Jewish 76.5%, Muslim 15.9%, Arab Christians 1.7%, other Christian 0.4%, Druze 1.6%, unspecified 3.9%.
Gender and Health Issues: Gender and health issues mirror those of most of the developed world. While there is still a small gap in literacy between men (97.3%) and women (93.6%), abortion is largely legalized, both maternal and infant mortality rates are low (6.89 deaths per 1,000 live births and 17 deaths of 100,000 births respectively), and contraceptive use, with 68% of women of childbearing age using a modern method of contraception, is comparable to that of the US (70%). Israel enjoys socialized health care; life expectancy is 79 years.
Environment and Resources:Limited arable land and natural fresh water resources pose serious constraints and are often the flashpoint for conflicts between Israelis and Palestinians. Desertification and air and groundwater pollution are also problems.
GDP:$114.3 billion
International Aid Received:$662 million from the United States
Receives US Counterterrorism Assistance: Yes
Death Penalty: Abolished for "ordinary crimes," the death penalty is only used for exceptional crimes such as crimes under military law, or in exceptional circumstances.
Top Five Industries: High-technology projects (including aviation, communications, computer-aided design and manufactures, medical electronics, fiber optics), wood and paper products, potash and phosphates, food, beverages and tobacco, caustic soda.
Poverty Rate: Twenty-one percent of Israel's population lives below the poverty line, defined at $937.50 per month for a family of four, or $235 per person per month.
McDonald's Restaurants: Present in the country since 1993; Currently there are more than 120 McDonald's Restaurants in Israel. Its Jerusalem restaurants have often been the site of protests by Orthodox Jews who take offense at their policy of remaining open during Shabbat and preparation of non-kosher foods.
Currency: New Israeli Shekel - about 4.5 to the dollar
Media: Israel ranks at 47 out of 167 on the Reporters without Borders Press Freedom Index, 3 ranks below the United States. Half of the population are Internet users.
Posted: 2006
Country Fact Sheet Sources
- General Statistics - CIA World Factbook: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/
- Abortion Legal Status, Maternal Mortality, Infant Mortality, Contraception: http://www.medicationabortion.com
- Abortion Legal Status: http://www.crlp.org/pub_fac_abortion_laws.htm
- Contraceptive Use: http://www.un.org/esa/population/publications/contraceptive2005/WCU2005.htm
- Maternal Mortality: http://www.childinfo.org/areas/maternalmortality/countrydata.php
- McDonald’s Country List: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_with_McDonald%27s_franchises
- Reporters Without Borders Press Freedom Index: http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=19388
- The Economist Intelligence Unit Quality of Life Index: http://www.economist.com/media/pdf/QUALITY_OF_LIFE.pdf
- Human Development Index: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_Human_Development_Index
- 2005 Environmental Sustainability Index: www.yale.edu/esi/
- General Statistics - World Atlas: http://www.geographyiq.com
- Counterterrorism Funding Information - State Dept. Country Reports: http://www.state.gov/s/ct/rls/crt
- Death Penalty Status: http://web.amnesty.org/pages/deathpenalty-countries-eng
- Human Trafficking information: http://www.state.gov/g/tip/rls/tiprpt/2006/
- BBC Country Profiles: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/country_profiles/default.stm
- Department For International Development: http://www.dfid.gov.uk/countries/allcountries.asp?view=region
- United Nations Development Programme: http://www.undp.org/
- The World Bank: http://www.worldbank.org/
Note: Population growth projections are often controversial. To calculate them for these fact sheets, we simply used the current population and population growth rate provided by the CIA World Factbook.