JumpStart International

In the first five weeks of its clearance and revitalization project in Beit Lahiya, a city in the northern Gaza Strip, JumpStart International has provided 1,035 job opportunity days to local people.

JumpStart workers clean the streets of Beit Lahiya

Under the project, which has a budget of $31,381 and is expected to last for two months, JumpStart’s workers clean and clear the city’s streets and sidewalks from debris. JumpStart’s average weekly labor costs stands at $2,110, accounting for the daily wages of 36 workers and two foremen. The workers are employed for a 30-day period, and new workers are hired at the end of each month. A few of the workers have been retained as supervisors.

It has been difficult to secure enough fuel for the heavy equipment and trucks to remove the debris. Average fuel costs total $1,637 per week.

  The front-end loaders and trucks are provided by local municipalities. JumpStart secures fuel and other tools and materials used for clearance

Despite the difficulties that our office in Gaza has experienced, including limited electricity and fuel supply, the clearance and revitalization project in Beit Lahiya has made life more bearable for the local people. Their morale has greatly improved during their participation in the revitalization of their own municipality.

More workers

Our workers are divided into four teams and are easily recognizable by the JumpStart buttons they wear. The fact that JumpStart, an American NGO, is helping the local people is greatly appreciated by them. JumpStart has received numerous requests from the municipalities and residents of adjacent cities such as Beit Hanoun and Jabaliya to start similar activities there.

JumpStart plans to expand the number of its projects in the Gaza Strip and employ several hundred workers before year-end.