International Cooperation
It is Israel's fervent wish to maintain good relations
with all countries, with their governments and their peoples... (David Ben-Gurion,
1952)
The State of Israel,
a member of the United Nations since 1949, maintains relations with the majority of countries around
the world. With memories of centuries of persecution, the shattering
experience of the Holocaust and the
decades-long Arab-Israeli conflict, Israel's foreign policy has been
geared to advance peace in the region while ensuring the country's security
and promoting cooperation with all nations.
Since its establishment,
Israel has been eager to share with the international
community skills learned from its own development
experience. This desire led to the founding,
in 1958, of MASHAV
- The Center for International Cooperation - as a department within the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs, responsible for the planning and
implementation of Israel's international cooperation
program.
MASHAV's programs are based on the transfer
of technological skills and human resource
enrichment. Activities are designed to enhance
professional skills by combining theory with
a practical approach, integrating research
with on-site project implementation, and adapting
new technologies to meet development priorities
of the host countries.
In cooperation with government ministries,
professional and academic institutions, and
research centers throughout Israel, MASHAV
works in partnership with countries in the
developing world and with those whose economies
are in transition, towards overcoming their
respective development challenges in areas
such as poverty alleviation, primary health
care, food security, early childhood education,
combating desertification, gender equality,
small and medium enterprises, and integrated
rural development.
Since its inception, almost 200,000 men and
women have participated in MASHAV's professional
training courses conducted in Israel and abroad,
and over 10,000 long and short-term Israeli
experts have been dispatched to cooperate
with their local counterparts in partner countries.
MASHAV works worldwide with some 140 developing
countries. Some of MASHAV's activities are
conducted in partnership with donor countries,
including the United States and the Netherlands,
and international assistance agencies, such
as FAO, UNDP, WHO and the World Bank.
In the context of the Middle East peace process,
MASHAV places priority on establishing development
programs with its neighbors, in an effort
to promote peaceful cooperation through economic
and social development.
Sources: Israeli
Ministry of Foreign Affairs |