Government Assets in Palestine: Between Public Waste and Legal Protection Gaps

Government assets in Palestine – including lands, buildings and facilities, vehicles, machinery and equipment, in addition to the assets of the Palestine Investment Fund, and some assets of the Palestinian National Fund – constitute a fundamental sovereign pillar of national wealth, and were supposed to represent one of the main sources of financing the general budget, supporting sustainable development, enhancing economic independence, and reducing the public financing gap, as well as consolidating public trust in public institutions. Yet practical reality reveals a wide gap between the latent size of these assets and their actual contribution to public finance and the national economy.

This article, based on the Aman Coalition report issued in 2025 titled "Government Assets, Their Investments and the Level of Governance in Them", prepared by researcher Dr. Nasr Abdul Karim, addresses the reality of the management of government assets and their investments in Palestine, and exposes structural, legislative and institutional imbalances that have contributed to weakening the economic return of these assets, and opened the door to waste and misuse, in light of additional constraints imposed by the occupation on control and sovereignty over wide parts of these assets.

·        Importance of the report and research problems

The importance of the report stems from its rarity in a vital research field that has not received sufficient attention, and from attempting to provide a comprehensive diagnosis of the reality of government assets and the level of governance that regulates them. However, the report faced serious obstacles, most notably the absence of a unified and updated national database, and weak cooperation from some official entities in providing information, or their providing only partial and incomplete data, which impeded reaching an accurate and comprehensive picture. This reality points to what can be called figuratively the "dormant cells" within the administrative structure, which facilitate or tolerate assaults on public funds through negligence in performing their oversight duties, a matter that, in my view, necessitates the recovery of all government assets that were historically attacked, and the accountability of those responsible for that without exception.

·       Government assets and governance: a matter of public trust

The report confirms that prudent management of government assets is not a purely technical matter, but a political–economic–societal issue directly linked to citizens' trust in public institutions, to the level of transparency and accountability, and to the state's ability to prevent corruption and safeguard social and political stability. Governments often own massive public wealth, yet it is sometimes managed according to short-term political calculations at the expense of the public interest and long-term economic return.

·       Legislative framework: legal protection with implementation gaps

The management of government assets is regulated by a legislative framework that includes the amended Basic Law, the general budget law, and a number of presidential decrees by law, most notably:

• Presidential Decree by Law No. (43) of 2021 concerning State Property,
• Presidential Decree by Law No. (22) of 2018 for the Protection of State Lands and Property,
• Regulation for Leasing State Property No. (13) of 2023.

Despite the importance of this framework in filling a previous legal vacuum that opened the door to conflicts of jurisdiction and political transgressions, practical implementation revealed significant gaps, the most important of which are: the absence of executive regulations, weak asset valuation standards, and the non-mandatory publication of contracts and agreements, which restricts public oversight and weakens protection of the public interest.

·        Institutional framework and multiple authorities

Responsibilities for managing government assets are distributed among the Ministry of Finance, the Lands Authority, the Palestine Investment Fund, and the Permanent Technical Committee for the Management of State Property. However, the multiplicity of authorities and weak institutional coordination, alongside ambiguity in the relationship between the Palestinian Authority and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), prevented the construction of a unified national database and weakened investment and oversight planning. This ambiguity is particularly evident in the affiliation of some institutions subordinate to the Organization, resulting from the absence of a regulatory and clear institutional framework for the relationship between the Organization and the Authority, despite the explicit provision in the Basic Law on the Organization's supreme reference.

·        Reality of government assets and their investments

First: State lands

State lands constitute a highly important strategic resource, yet they suffer from weak surveying and registration, inconsistent modes of utilization, and the absence of transparent standards for allocation and investment. The total area of land registered as state property reached about 579 thousand dunums, with more than 60% concentrated in the governorates of Tubas and Jericho, while a large share lies in areas classified as Area C and in nature reserves (68%). Despite improved revenues from these lands—from about 126 thousand dollars in 2022 to more than 1.1 million dollars in 2023—the absence of regular publication of financial data limits transparency and accountability.

Second: Government vehicles

The number of government vehicles is estimated at about 6,200 vehicles, most of which are concentrated in the security sector. The report points to clear imbalances in usage patterns, inflated operating and maintenance costs, and weak oversight of compliance with regulations, which exacerbates financial waste.

Third: Government buildings and facilities

·         The government buildings include ministries, schools, hospitals, security headquarters and others, and they suffer from shortcomings in maintenance and modernization, and the absence of a link between usage and operational efficiency. The uneven geographical distribution of some of these facilities reflects additional challenges in planning and resource management. For example, the report provided statistics on the distribution of schools owned by the Ministry of Education by region: for example:

Hebron 392, Nablus 245, Jenin 160, Tulkarm 142, Ramallah 131, Bethlehem 120, Jerusalem 102 ...etc.

Fourth: Assets of the Palestine Investment Fund

Despite the great importance of the Fund’s assets, which amounted to about 900 million dollars until the end of 2024, there is a notable lack of sufficient public disclosure regarding performance and returns, which limits public accountability, despite the relative stability in the Fund’s financial position.

·        Asset governance and corruption risks

The report documents clear manifestations of shortcomings in the governance of government asset management, including weak separation of authorities, the absence of integrated electronic systems, shortcomings in internal control, weak periodic disclosure, and unclear criteria for investment decision-making. These imbalances increase the risks of waste and misuse, and open the door to corruption, negatively affecting public trust.

·        Conclusion and recommendations

The report concludes that improving the management of government assets requires comprehensive structural reform, beginning with preparing a unified national strategy, completing the executive regulations, unifying valuation and allocation standards, building a comprehensive and updated national database, enhancing disclosure and publishing contracts and financial data, developing integrated electronic systems, strengthening internal and external oversight, with a clear separation between operational and investment assets, and maximizing economic return without compromising the public interest.