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Jews and Bedouins are the two largest populations of southern Israel. The
Bedouin population is in transition from a semi-nomadic to a settled, semi-urban
lifestyle. Since 1948, the Bedouins in Israel who were desert nomads, have
become more settled and are undergoing a process of urbanization. However,
despite recent changes in lifestyle, the rates of hospitalizations for
infectious diseases of infants and young children in this population are several
fold higher than for the largely urban Jewish population living in the same
geographic region and served by the same health care services. The Jews account
for 75.9% of the population and 49% of the births, while the Bedouins account
for 23.3% of the population but 50.8% of the births. The Bedouins have thus very
high birth rates and suffer from overcrowding, low rates of education and
relative poverty. |
