Ahead of Jerusalem Day on Tuesday evening and Wednesday, which this year celebrates 57 years since the city was reunified in the Six-Day War, the Jerusalem Institute for Policy Research has published its 38th annual report on the city, which provides an in-depth statistical look at the capital.
With a population of 1,005,900 in 2022, Jerusalem’s population is double that of Tel Aviv’s, according to the latest census figures.
Construction in Jerusalem hit a new high in 2023, with work beginning on 5,800 housing units—the largest number to date. In 2023, the labor force participation rate among Arab women in the city continued rising as well, reaching 29%.
While 7,600 new immigrants chose Jerusalem as their first destination in Israel in 2022, continuing an upward trend, the city’s overall migration balance remained negative at -7,200 compared to -6,600 the previous year.
The top destinations for those migrating out of Jerusalem were Beit Shemesh (18%), Bnei Brak (4%), Givat Ze’ev (4%), Tel Aviv-Jaffa (6%), Modi’in (3%), Beitar Illit (3%), Modi’in Illit (2%), Ma’ale Adumim (2%) and Kochav Ya’akov (1%).
On the education and tourism fronts, Jerusalem led the country with 41,300 students at its institutions of higher learning in the 2022/23 academic year and 2,735,400 foreign visitor overnight stays in 2023.
Public transportation use was up 13% in 2023 compared to the year before, with light rail ridership increasing 20%.
The report additionally detailed the impacts of the Swords of Iron war, including 13,800 evacuees absorbed in Jerusalem’s hotels and homes.
Moreover, there was a spike in jobseekers to 26,000 in November 2023—double the number before the war—before a recovery in employment, and an 80% drop in tourist overnight stays in the final quarter of the year.
Originally published by Israel Hayom.
