"The Manhattan of the Dan Region" was the title of yesterday's Bnei Brak conference, which unveiled the "next business center of Israel" - the Bnei Brak Business Center (BBC), located in the northern part of the city. The BBC is due to have 15 high-rises.
Participants at the conference included Governor of the Bank of Israel Prof. Stanley Fischer, Minister of Finance Yuval Steinitz, Africa-Israel Investments Ltd. (TASE:AFIL) chairman Lev Leviev, and other leading businessmen.
Fischer said, "I am pleased that everyone emphasized that the employment situation and poverty need not exist in haredi (ultra-orthodox) cities, and that there is no reason for this to continue. It contributes nothing to the things that are important to use as Jews and Israeli citizens."
Fischer said that what was happening in Bnei Brak was part of a growing trend in Israel. "The mayor of Bnei Brak wrote me that he wants to make an important step to make Bnei Brak a major business destination, and to increase revenue of the city and its residents. What the city will do with the extra revenue is very important - some of it should go to education, because the people need to obtain the tools for dealing with the new situation."
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on March 16, 2011
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