Housing In Jerusalem Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Housing In Jerusalem - Essay Example Finally, a brief discussion on how NGOs and the international media interpret and represent this unique dynamic will be represented. Firstly, it must be understood that the key economic challenge of housing within Jerusalem has to do with the fact that the demand for housing is extraordinarily high. There are ultimately two reasons for this. The first of these reasons has to do with the ongoing efforts of the Israeli government to settle more Jewish people from around the world within Israel’s borders. As such, the strain to continually create new housing and new infrastructure places a high strain on limited resources and creates a situation in which the price for these accommodations is exorbitantly high. What this in turn effects is a situation in which only the ultra rich can afford to live anywhere near Jerusalem itself; necessarily reducing the possibility for the cities sizeable Arab minority to be able to afford to buy new housing. The second issue that affects the high cost and extreme high demand of housing has to do with the culturally high fertility rates that are exhibited amongst both the Jew ish and Arab population of Jerusalem. As a direct result of this, the overall number of individuals that reach maturity and seek out accommodations within the city that they call home increases exponentially each and every year (Schmemann 4). Not surprisingly, as with almost every other issue, the way in which NGOs and the international media approach this issue of population growth within Jerusalem, and more generally within Israel, is somewhat warped. As such, stakeholders oftentimes assume that the pressures on the housing market within Jerusalem are contingent upon the immigrants to Israel that are brought in as a function of collecting ethnically Jewish individuals from around the globe and settling them in Israel. As such,