Abstract
Several factors make Palestine a case apart for the analysis and study of migration: a dependent state still under Israeli occupation; a dependent economy; no control over borders; the lack of sovereignty over land and natural resources; and the absence of detailed data on migration. Given these limitations, this note approaches several aspects of the gender dimension of migration from Palestine, by using a variety of sources, both national and international, in order to define the most comprehensive profile of Palestinian women on migration. As a whole, the propensity for Palestinians to emigrate has decreased in the last decades regardless of their level of education. However, the same analysis conducted according to sex, found evidence that highly-skilled women were more likely to emigrate than their male counterparts. As women are more likely to undertake tertiary education, and as, at the same time, socio-economic conditions do not improve, emigration is found to be a good (or necessary solution) in improving life conditions and trying to develop skills abroad. Indeed, the characteristics of women abroad are continually changing. Younger generations of Palestinian female emigrants tend to be better educated and tend too to participate more in the labor market of host countries. However, studying the link between gender and migration leads to a more comprehensive reflection on the cultural constraints faced by women in Palestinian society. Despite the disadvantaged position of women with respect to men in all labor-market indicators, the vast majority do not wish to migrate in order to stay with family or spouses. They often stop their education because ‘they want to remain at home in housekeeping’ or simply because ‘their family does not allow them to continue studying’. These patterns suggest that the cultural environment is an ‘obstacle’ for women, both in leaving the country, their family and their spouses and in entering the Palestinian labor market. To conclude, while the gender gap is declining in Palestinian life and while Palestinian women abroad are better and better educated and ever more present in the labor market, greater efforts must be made in order to attain gender equality in all aspects of life at home.