In schools throughout the country, there are 34,000 computers in use which will not be upgraded or converted for the year 2000 bug. This is due to the absence of a designated budget in the local authorities and the union of local authorities, and in the Ministry of Education. The cost of upgrading the computers and dealing with the Y2K bug is estimated at NIS 22 million.
A sample check conducted in a number of local authorities throughout the country, including both economically strong local authorities and authorities with deficits shows that a major part of school computers require Y2K upgrading and conversion. On the basis of the survey’s findings, it was determined that all the computers should be upgraded and converted.
On the basis of the findings, it was further determined that failing to deal in advance with the computer systems in schools is liable to cause the collapse of many of them, and the total paralysis of computerized activities in schools.
Due to this fear, the local authorities approached the Ministry of Education with a request for budget approval to attend to computer systems in schools, through the union of local authorities. To date, there has been no response to the request. Some local authority heads therefore approached the Mifal Hapayis lottery, requesting the matter be discussed in previous meetings.
In a decision in principle, the Mifal Hapayis board of directors determined that it would not finance the upgrading and conversion of computers, since the matter was not included in the list of subjects the national lottery deals with.
The Ministry of Education responded that, at the present stage, there was no budget designated for Y2K bug upgrading and conversion, and that the local authorities should finance themselves and attend to the problem.
Published by Israel's Business Arena January 21, 1999