The impact of the palestinian popular boycott on the demand for the palestinian food products

Abstract

Palestine turned to an economic boycott option as a way to resist the occupation which leads cumulatively to attack the occupation economy. The study aims; first, to determine the impact of Palestinian popular boycott campaigns on food imports from the Israeli occupation. Second, to determine the impact of Palestinian popular boycott campaigns on local food exports to the Israeli occupation. Third, to determine the impact of Palestinian popular boycott campaigns on the local food production. The quantitative method is adopted using secondary data from publications, statistics, studies, and previous researches. The secondary data used in this study include various financial indicators and microeconomics variables collected from the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), and the Center for International Studies and Information (CEPII). First, the results show that boycott campaigns after Al-Aqsa Intifada, Gaza War 2008, Gaza War 2012, Gaza War 2014, and Al-Quds Intifada have dropped the food imports from the Israeli occupation by 0.42%, 0.17%, 0.18%, 0.29%, and 0.34% respectively. Second, the exports to the Israeli occupation after Gaza War 2008 and 2012 increased by 0.16% and 1.20% respectively. And it declined after the boycott campaigns that followed the outbreak of Al-Aqsa Intifada, Gaza War 2014, and Al-Quds intifada by 0.68%, 0.88%, and 0.74% respectively. Third, this study proved that boycott campaigns, the food GCF, and food employment are positively affecting the local food production. The study will contribute to the boycott field since it is one of the few that concentrates on food products boycotts. The study sheds light on the role of popular boycott campaigns in confronting the occupation and helps to encourage other individuals and community institutions to follow the economic boycott method. The study explains how a boycott can bridge the gap between a reduction in the import of Israeli foods and local food production and thus contribute to recommendations for decision-makers to support local products. The study plays an important role by embodying the Palestinian experience as an example for the rest of the world’s people. The future studies may look at other industries affecting the Palestinian economy such as the non-metallic mineral industry. And investigate the impact of boycott at micro-level scope.