Jerusalem of a million: Only two-thirds of the capital's residents participate in the labor force | Israel Hayom

Jerusalem, which is marking 56 years since its liberation from the Jordanians in the Six-Day War, is known for the uniqueness of its diverse population. Jews alongside Arabs, ultra-Orthodox and secular, everyone and every identity has a place in the city, which has accompanied the history of the Jewish people for thousands of years.

According to the latest Central Bureau of Statistics update, Jerusalem is home to 966,200 people – 576,600 of them Jews, 375,600 Arabs (of whom 362,600 are Muslims and 12,900 Christians), 3,500 non-Arab Christians, and 10,500 residents without a religious affiliation. Since the publication of the data (end of 2021), it is estimated that the city's population has grown by tens of thousands of people, bringing the total population to about one million.

Almost a million Jerusalemites. Data on the city of Jerusalem ahead of Jerusalem Day 2022/23, photo: Moshe Shai

Among the city's Jewish population, the share of the ultra-Orthodox population stands out. At the end of 2021, Haredim constituted about 48 per cent of Jerusalem's Jewish population, and about 29 per cent of the city's total population. According to data from the Central Bureau of Statistics Social Survey (average for 2021-2019), of the 322,800 Jews aged 20 and over living in Jerusalem, 19% defined themselves as secular (62,400 residents), 25% defined themselves as traditional (81,800), 20% defined themselves as religious (65,600), and 35% defined themselves as ultra-Orthodox (113,100).

Young population

At the end of 2021, the median age among Jerusalem residents was 24.2, compared to 30.1 in Israel's general population. Jerusalem is also characterized by a high percentage of children (up to age 14), who constitute 33% of the city's total population.

In addition, Jerusalem has a high overall fertility rate: in 2021, the fertility rate in the city was 3.9, compared to 3.0 in Israel as a whole. The fertility rate of Jewish women in Jerusalem was 4.4, higher than that of Arab women in Jerusalem – 3.1. The differences between fertility rates stem mainly from the very high fertility rates among the ultra-Orthodox and religious populations, and from the decline in the fertility rate of Arab Israeli women.

Young people hanging out at the market: Photo: Oren Ben Hakon

In the 2021/22 school year, 183,100 students were enrolled in the Jewish education system in Jerusalem: 37% of them studied in the State, State-Religious and State-Haredi schools, and 63% of them studied in the Haredi education system. The scope of Arab education in the city that year was 119,700 students, constituting 40% of all students in the Jerusalem education system.

The number of new immigrants who chose to live in Jerusalem was the highest among Israel's cities, standing at 3,700 immigrants – about 14% of all immigrants to Israel. In 2021, Jerusalem's intercity migration balance was negative, at 10,900. Jerusalem's total migration balance (including immigrants, arrivals and departures from abroad and family reunification) was 6,600.

In 2022, Jerusalem's labour force participation rate of prime working ages (64-25) stood at 67 per cent (compared to 82 per cent nationwide). Among men, the labor force participation rate in the city was 74% (compared to 85% nationwide), and among women it was 60% (compared to 79% nationwide).

Nuns at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, photo: Moshe Shai

The figures are low relative to Israeli society, because the employment rate of Haredi men and Arab women is significantly lower than that of society as a whole. Haredi men participate in the labor force at a rate of only 45%, and Arab women at a rate of only 27%.

In 2021, 39 per cent of families in Jerusalem (125,900) and 51 per cent of children in the city (202,400) lived below the poverty line. Jerusalem's poverty rate is significantly higher than in Israel as a whole, where 21 per cent of families and 28 per cent of children lived below the poverty line. The phenomenon of poverty in Jerusalem is particularly prevalent among the ultra-Orthodox and Arab Israeli populations, which are characterized by families with many children and low incomes.

Jews and Arabs, side by side. Jaffa Street in Jerusalem, Photo: Jonathan Zindel/Flash90

The tourists are coming back

The Jerusalem Institute for Policy Research publishes the 37th Statistical Yearbook of Jerusalem. According to the data, in 2022 there was a significant increase in hotel room occupancy in Jerusalem, which stood at 55 per cent, compared to only 22 per cent in 2021. However, room occupancy remains low compared to 2019 (72 per cent), the year before the COVID-<> outbreak.

Jerusalem was the leading destination for tourists from abroad in 2022, 34% of all tourist overnight stays from abroad in Israel were recorded in the city. The industry's recovery is also reflected in hotel revenue in Jerusalem, which stood at about NIS 2 billion in 2022.

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