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Israel at 57 - A Statistical Glance
(May 11, 2005)
Geography
Israel
stands at the crossroads of Europe, Asia and Africa. Geographically,
it belongs to the Asian continent. Its western border is the Mediterranean
Sea. To the north it is bound by Lebanon and Syria, to the east by Jordan
and to the south by the Red Sea and Egypt. Long and narrow in shape,
Israel is about 290 miles (470 km.) long and 85 miles (135 km.) across
at its widest point. Its total area is 22,145 sq km, of which 21,671
sq km is land area.
Geographical Regions
| Arid Zones |
45% |
| Plains and Valleys |
25% |
| Mountains |
16% |
| Rift Valley |
9% |
| Coastal Strip |
5% |
Selected elevations:
| Mt. Hermon,
Golan |
9,220
ft. |
2,810
m. |
| Mt. Meron,
Upper Galilee |
3,964
ft. |
1,208
m. |
| Mt. Ramon,
Negev |
3,396
ft. |
1,035
m. |
| Mt. of
Olives, Jerusalem |
2,739
ft. |
835
m. |
| Mt. Tabor,
Lower Galilee |
1,930
ft. |
588
m. |
| Mt. Carmel,
Haifa |
1,792
ft. |
546
m. |
| Dead Sea
- lowest point on earth |
-
1,300 ft. |
-
400 m. |
People
| |
1980 |
1990 |
2004 |
| Population |
3,921,700 |
4,821,700 |
6,864,000 |
| Civilian labor force |
1,318,100 |
1,649,900 |
2,610,000 |
| Jews in Israel, as a percentage of world Jewry |
25 |
30 |
40 |
Life expectancy
Females
Males |
75.7
72.1
|
78.4
75.7
|
81.5
77.5
|
Infant mortality
(per 1000 live births) |
15.6 |
9.9 |
5.1 |
| School population |
1,200,700 |
1,451,300 |
1,932,000 |
| Percentage of the population (15+) with 13 years
or more of formal schooling |
19.2 |
25.3 |
39.2 |
Population
by Religion
| Jews |
76.5% |
| Muslims |
15.9% |
| Christians |
2.1% |
| Druze |
1.6% |
| Not classified by religion |
3.8% |
|
|
Population
Distribution
| Urban localities |
91.7% |
| Rural localities |
8.3% |
Of which:
Moshavim
Kibbutzim |
3.3%
1.7% |
|
Immigrants
by Continent
1948-2003
| Europe |
1,779,100 |
| Africa |
485,990 |
| Asia |
422,870 |
| America & Oceania |
231,400 |
| Unknown |
31,560 |
|
|
Immigrants
by Year of Immigration
| 1948-1951 |
688,000 |
| 1952-1959 |
272,000 |
| 1960-1969 |
374,000 |
| 1970-1979 |
346,000 |
| 1980-1989 |
154,000 |
| 1990-2001 |
1,060,091 |
| 2002-2003 |
56,835 |
|
Economy
State Budget,
2005: NIS 264.5 billion
| |
1980 |
1990 |
2003 |
| Gross
Domestic Product (US$ billions) |
23.2 |
59.2 |
107.8 |
| Net
exports of goods (US$ billions) |
5,291.9 |
11,603.1 |
29,375.3 |
thereof:
Industrial products (excl. diamonds)
Agricultural products |
3,340.4
555.7 |
7,696.8
657.2 |
19,449.7
714.7 |
| Net
imports of goods (US$ billions) |
7,845.7 |
15,107.1 |
34,026.5 |
| Tourists
arriving |
1,065,800 |
1,131,700 |
1,063,400 |
| Air
passengers |
2,847,000 |
3,720,000
|
6,842,000 |
| Freight
shipped by air (in tons) |
105,800 |
194,160 |
307,351 |
| Production
of electricity (millions of kilwatt/hours) |
12,400 |
20,900 |
45,608 |
| Private
cars |
410,000 |
803,000 |
1,520,571 |
Education
University
Students by Field of Study
(Total 120,552 students in 7 universities) |
| Humanities |
25.9% |
| Social
Sciences |
29.2% |
| Science
and mathematics |
17.1% |
| Engineering |
14.2% |
| Medicine |
8.4% |
| Law |
4.0% |
| Business
& Administration |
6.9% |
| Agriculture |
1.2% |
* Figures based on the Statistical
Abstract of Israel, No. 55, 2004
Source: Israeli
Foreign Ministry |
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