A quality of life snapshot of Israel

May 26, 2011 - 12:21 PM by David

When there's not enough space in the house, Israelis head out to the beach.

Apparently we’re quite fertile here in Israel, but we don’t have a lot of space to house all of our offspring.

According to a newly released ‘Better Life Index’ compiled by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Israel has the highest fertility rate of all countries in the OECD, with an average of 2.96 children per household, above the average of 1.74. The country with the second-highest birthrate is Iceland, with 2.22 children per household.

However, like the old lady in the shoe, we’re not really prepared for the ramifications of our amorous ways. The average home in Israel has 1.1 rooms per person, which is less than the OECD average of 1.6.

Of course there’s nothing wrong with sharing a room with your siblings. But there’s also the issues of bathrooms. 4.4 percent of dwellings in Israel lack private access to indoor toilets, in contrast to the OECD average of 2.5%. So not only are we waiting behind our family to go to the bathroom, some of us are waiting outside.

According to a Globes story on the OECD report, Israel registers erratically under economic indicators: average household disposable income in Israel, after taxes, is $19,456, which is lower than the OECD average of $22,284, average household wealth, which also measures real-estate assets and the total value of a household’s financial worth, is $62,684, compared with the OECD average of $36,808, and the number of working-age (15-64) Israelis who have a paid job is 59%, below the OECD average of 65%.

Israel also has the second-highest income poverty rate in the OECD, coming in only behind Mexico. While the OECD average of income poverty is 11.1%, 20% of Israelis qualify as living in poverty. In addition, 39% of Israelis “find it difficult or very difficult to live on their current income,” a much higher rate than the average of 24%.

While the average life expectancy in Israel is 81.1 years, above the OECD average of 79.3, Israelis were found not to be so satisfied with that extra time. We ranked the 6th lowest in terms of feeling well-rested, being treated with respect, smiling and experiencing enjoyment. Also, more Israelis reported negative experiences (pain, worry, sadness, stress and depression) than any other country in the OECD.

I guess people in other countries never had to sit through the endless stream of commercials on Channels 2 and 10, which prompts most of those emotions nightly. But hey, a little pain, depression and being treated disrespectfully is all part of the Israeli experience. And, after all, we still have humous!

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