Israel launches NIS 15 million initiative to bring Druze, Circassians into tech industry - Pesach Benson

 

by Pesach Benson

The NIS 15 million ($4.69 million) initiative aims to support technological entrepreneurship and connect aspiring entrepreneurs to high-tech companies, academia, investors, and professional mentors.

 

ISRAELI AND Druze flags at the entrance to the northern Druze village of Hurfeish on November 29 2023.

(photo credit: Eitan Elhadez-Barak/TPS-IL)

 

Israel is launching a government initiative to promote technological entrepreneurship within Druze and Circassian society by establishing two innovation centers in the north, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office announced on Monday.

The NIS 15 million ($4.69 million) initiative aims to support technological entrepreneurship and connect aspiring entrepreneurs to high-tech companies, academia, investors, and professional mentors.

“Establishing the innovation centers in the north is a strategic government initiative to reduce gaps and create true equality of opportunity in Israeli society. We are giving young people from the Druze and Circassian community an entry ticket to the world of technology and high-tech entrepreneurship, recognizing that integrating diverse populations is an essential need for the continued growth of the Israeli high-tech industry,” said Innovation, Science and Technology Minister Gila Gamliel.

“The centers will be a powerful tool for social and personal mobility, and will connect the enormous potential in the area to the national ecosystem for the benefit of both our economy and social resilience,” she added.

Israel’s Druze community of 152,000 traces its ancestry back to the biblical figure Jethro, the father-in-law of Moses. They speak Arabic but are not Muslim. In Israel, the Druze serve in senior positions in public and military life.

A Druze IDF soldier in Daliat al-Carmel, in northern Israel (credit: AMIR COHEN/REUTERS)

Israel’s Circassian population is approximately 5,000. Originally from the northern Caucasus, the Circassians were expelled from the area during the Russo-Circassian War. The Ottoman Empire eventually resettled them in the Galilee. Although the Circassians are Muslim, they serve in the Israeli military.

“Establishing innovation centers in Druze society is an investment that generates double value: technological advancement alongside social reinforcement,” said Yasser Jedban, Chairman of the Druze and Circassian Heads of Authorities Forum. “We are creating an infrastructure for collaborations with industry, so that the men and women of the community can lead startups, develop groundbreaking solutions, and bring our culture to the high-tech world.”

Supporting startups and entrepreneurs 

The two centers, Northtech Galil and Beyond-D Innovations, will operate with a cumulative investment of NIS 15 million ($4.69 million). Northtech Galil will focus on supporting early-stage startups and entrepreneurs from the Galilee and Golan Heights, connecting them with professionals, universities, and experienced mentors. Beyond-D Innovations, based in the Carmel region, will provide support across all stages of entrepreneurship, from initial idea development to early investment rounds, and will include a dedicated fund for Druze entrepreneurs.

The centers will join 13 existing innovation hubs in Israel’s periphery, spanning from Kiryat Shmona to Eilat. Together, these initiatives form a national effort to strengthen local entrepreneurship, expand human capital, and foster economic growth by integrating additional populations into Israel’s high-tech ecosystem.

“Promoting demographic and geographic diversity in high-tech is a central and long-term goal of the Innovation Authority,” said Dr. Alon Stopel, Chairman of the Innovation Authority. “The establishment of innovation centers for the Druze and Circassian society is a significant milestone in expanding opportunities for these communities, and will enable the creation of an infrastructure for the development of technological entrepreneurship, professional training at the highest level, and a connection to the Israeli high-tech ecosystem.”

Pesach Benson

Source: https://www.jpost.com/business-and-innovation/article-881680

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