Israel Active

SAWA is a microfinance initiative from Koret Israel Economic Development Funds that offers loans to women with promising business ideas.  SAWA began in the country’s South focusing on Bedouin women, and has recently expanded further north.

Professor Michael (Mousa) Karayanni is the first-ever Israeli-Arab to be appointed dean of the Faculty of Law at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.  Professor Karayanni, is from a Christian Greek Orthodox family in the Galilee town of Kafr Yasif.

TechForGood has announced registration for the third cycle of its Israeli accelerator program, which supports startups that leverage technology in order to address social issues. It seeks Israeli startups with ideas for the elderly, the environment, food quality, healthcare, etc.

The IDF sent three military firefighting planes and a cargo plane together with personnel to Cyprus to help combat raging fires near the Cypriot city of Paphos.  It was the biggest fire Cyprus had seen in recent years, with strong winds making it difficult to bring the fire under control.

For the first time in the history of the state, starting January 1, 2017, every Israeli child below the age of 18 will receive a trust fund in which the National Insurance Administration (Israel’s Social Security) will be making monthly deposits.

The 3 Million Club is an Israeli NGO that works in Haiti, Nepal, and is now starting in India.  It supplies nutritional bars that are specially formulated to cure children from malnutrition within 12-weeks.

Good article detailing some of the international partnerships of the Technion (US), Tel Aviv University (China), Ben Gurion University (China), Hebrew University of Jerusalem (Singapore), University of Haifa (China), Weizmann Institute (France) and Bar-Ilan University (China).  Also, the HUJ and TAU are in the Times Higher Education’s top 20 Asian universities.

Israel hosted the "Entrepreneurship Conference for Developing Countries” where Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf expressed delight in Israeli entrepreneurs whose commitment to innovation has transformed their nation and improved the lives of its people.

The first annual Israel South Africa Water Week held successful sessions in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban. Over a dozen Israeli companies were joined by South African partners, NGO’s and high ranking members of national and provincial governments to focus on solutions for water scarcity in South Africa.

In 2012 Israel-founded companies contributed $6 billion in direct revenue and over 6,600 jobs in Massachusetts .  For 2015 the figures are $9.3 billion and nearly 9,000 jobs. Israeli companies directly generate nearly 4% of the State’s GDP.