Annual Economic Development Conference calls for changes in planning policy, land allocation

On Thursday, December 12, 2024, the Economic Development Conference for the Arab Society was held, emphasizing the need for changes in planning policy and land allocation by the Israel Land Authority and the district planning committees. The conference was attended by 20 local authority heads, and over 250 professionals, business owners, embassy representatives, and activists from various organizations and regions. It was held in cooperation with the National Committee of Arab Local Authorities and the Friedrich Ebert Foundation.

Highlighting the poor implementation of Government Decision 550, Mossawa Center’s data analysis revealed that only a fraction of the budgets had been utilized, with significant declines from 80% in 2022 to just 25% in 2024.

Key speakers, criticized the Israeli government's policies and called for better cooperation between local authorities, civil society, and government ministries to address housing and industrial development issues. They highlighted bureaucratic obstacles, budgetary deficiencies, and discriminatory policies that exacerbate socio-economic disparities.  The conference sessions focused on housing projects and urban planning, financing for housing and industrial areas, and the vitality of the development of industrial zones to solve different problems the Arab society have suffered from, from lack of job opportunities to eliminating crime rates that have soared sharply in the last two years. Attendees discussed the urgent need for infrastructural improvements, better budget allocations, and policy reforms to promote equitable development and reduce economic gaps in Arab communities.

Mossawa Center cannot be prouder with the following achievements as a result of our advocacy efforts:

• Ten new industrial zones have been budgeted as result of our advocacy efforts with a total allocation of NIS 270 million ($75M).
• 30 applications to build welfare departments have been submitted and NIS 200 million ($55M) will be allocated to the welfare departments in the Arab community, until the end of 2024.
• Over NIS 1 billion ($280M) have been allocated to offer planning and housing solutions in Arab localities.
• The government multi-year plan aimed at closing welfare service gaps in Palestinian Arab society was designed to build accessible welfare department buildings, support at-risk youth, increase manpower in local authorities, address domestic violence, and make customized welfare programs more accessible. However, social distress in Palestinian Arab communities remains severe, with deepening poverty and escalating violence.
• The new economic governmental policy, the war in Gaza and Lebanon and the local elections urged us to invest more efforts through personal meetings with 20 newly elected mayors, and 22 female elected members of local councils. The efforts paid off: we managed to establish good working relationships these mayors and council.

Finally, the Mossawa Center, in collaboration with the National Committee of Arab Local Authorities, is working on an action plan to address the different challenges and ensure effective use of resources for the Arab community's economic growth.