"It is important to preserve Israel's advantage and leading status in science, in order to preserve the strength f the Israeli economy. In that respect, the Office of the Chief Scientist fills a key role. The activity of the Chief Scientist's Office provides very important support for research an development, and encourages innovation in every area of industry in Israel," Minister of Industry, Trade and labor Binyamin Ben-Eliezer said today at the Chief Scientist's Conference at Tel Aviv University.
In his remarks, Chief Scientist Dr. Eli Opper unveiled a joint venture of the Chief Scientist and the Ministry of Defense. "We are currently working on a joint fund with the Ministry of Defense to invest in technologies for the defense industries," Opper said. "We will combine resources for the fund, with a large part of the budget being allocated by the Ministry of Defense. The matter is still at the initial stages, and I hope it will gather momentum and become a reality quickly."
Ministry of Finance director-general Haim Shani said that Minister of Finance Yuval Steinitz had asked him to examine what needed to be done to maintain Israel's leadership in R&D. "We have set up a team, and are examining all round the needs of the high-tech industry in the short and long terms. Together with the Ministry of Education, we will try to understand what the future educational needs will be in order ensure that future generations of technologists will grow up here. We are looking at the links between academe and industry, and seeing how it might be possible to bring Israeli talents back to the country."
Eugene Kandel, head of the economic advisory council at the Prime Minister's Office, said, "It's strange that Israeli capital is hardly represented at the early and middle stages of the fastest growing industry of the Israeli economic engine. Pensioners of the State of New York finance start-ups here, and local pensioners don't. We want to bring about a situation in which Israeli money is invested in R&D for the long term, giving Israeli savers access to this area and a longer horizon to R|&D.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on March 4, 2010
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