Publications

On December 30, 2015, the Israeli cabinet unanimously adopted the five-year (2016-2020) economic development plan for integrating Israel’s Arab population into the country’s economy (Cabinet Resolution 922). The overall budget framework presented at that time for carrying out the plan amounted to NIS 15 billion. One year has passed since then. This review of the actual implementation of the plan is in line with the preceding report (INSS Insight No. 845, August 10, 2016), based on the assumption that regular and unconditional implementation of the plan, with all its elements, is an adequate criterion for assessing the government’s attitude towards the Arab minority in general.

What has been Carried Out so Far?

a. Budgeting procedures: The original plan included projects amounting to NIS 9.7 billion for economic development and NIS 5.8 billion for promoting education. The plan was presented with the aim of narrowing the gaps between Jewish and Arab citizens, in part by equalizing some of the discriminatory budgeting procedures. Since then, everything planned has been budgeted.

b. Preparation and formulation of work plans: A large proportion of the development plan – road infrastructure, public institutions, and residential development – is designated to be carried out by the government ministries. Implementation is slated to begin in 2017. The local Arab authorities, which are supposed to carry out their own plans (mainly public institutions), are also engaged in the preparatory stage.

c. Housing: Agreements have been signed with 23 Arab local authorities (two authorities have not signed agreements). Agreements have also been signed for carrying out specific projects in 54 Arab authorities. Construction will begin in 2017 on the basis of these agreements.

d. Education: NIS 55 million has been transferred to improve the quality of teaching. Targets were set for improving student achievements that were anchored in a government decision. In the framework of differential budgeting of the core curriculum in elementary and junior high schools, 52,000 study hours were added for Arab schools at a cost of NIS 350 million. NIS 91 million was budgeted for higher education for the purpose of supporting Arabs in academic institutions.

e. Informal education: An appeal was made to the local Arab authorities for carrying out an informal education program costing NIS 70 million. All the local authorities answered the call. A management and implementation mechanism was established in order to ensure equal division of resources and the removal of obstacles.

f. Health: In accordance with the cabinet resolution, a plan was devised to consolidate hospitals in Nazareth. Detailed plans and an economic model have not yet been formulated.

g. Employment: NIS 97 million was allocated for the development of industrial zones and NIS 50 million was allocated for operating 21 career guidance centers. NIS 33 million was allocated as incentives for employers to hire Arab workers. Hiring of 700 new workers is projected.

h. Daycare centers: In order to encourage the employment of mothers, NIS 22.4 million was allocated for the construction of daycare centers in 2016. Construction of 53 centers was approved this year.

i. Transportation: In order to increase the number of people using public transportation and improve access to industrial zones and foci of higher education, NIS 100 million was allocated in 2016 for adding 44 bus lines, bolstering the frequency of existing lines, and extending routes in Arab communities. A plan was also devised for upgrading roads at a cost of NIS 405 million. Planning has been completed and authorization has been issued for implementation.

j. Strengthened personal security: The police plan for enhancing personal security and strengthening police presence in the Arab community is in the advanced stages of implementation. NIS 120 million was allocated for this program.

k. Water and sewage: All the Arab authorities except four are currently incorporated in regional sewage corporations. The town of Taibe was added to a sewage corporation in the past year. Projects totaling NIS 240 million were budgeted in 2016.

A New Plan for Bedouin Communities

In addition, the Ministries of Finance and Agriculture and Rural Development (the latter is responsible for the Bedouin communities in the Negev) submitted a new five-year plan (2017-2022) totaling NIS 3.21 billion for enhancing the Bedouin communities. The main points of the new plan are promoting regulated construction in recognized communities, building new classrooms (NIS 1.2 billion), improving the quality of education (NIS 320 million), and advancing employment and strengthening the local authorities (NIS 500 million). The highlight of the program is the construction of 25,000 new housing units on state land with a cumulative budget – contingent upon implementation – of NIS 10 billion. The program is presented as one that one that is designed to give a systematic solution to the shortage of land and absence of regulated construction among the Bedouins. Like the larger plan, the proposal for the Bedouin sector has also encountered objections and stipulations within the government, and its future is unclear.

Obstacles to Implementation of the Five-Year Plan

As presented above, not insignificant progress has been achieved so far in important spheres. Still, the broader picture clearly indicates that the focus in the first year of implementation was on planning and organizational preparation, including budgetary allocations by the Ministry of Finance to government ministries (amounting to NIS 2.4 billion) and the local authorities, and far less on actual actions. This outcome is based on a series of obstacles, including:

a. Administrative difficulties in the local Arab authorities: Most of the local authorities function rather poorly, due to an absence of experience in managing large-scale projects. In order to strengthen them, NIS 900 million was transferred to the local authorities in 2016.

b. Government bureaucratic complications: Implementing the plan requires cooperation, flexibility, and orderly budget transfers. These complex processes usually encounter delays in large-scale projects. The Ministry for Social Equality and the Authority for the Economic Development of the Arab Sector are acting to detect and remove barriers. This is also one of the objectives of the Ministerial Steering Committee.

c. The tense political atmosphere prevailing between the government and the Arab community.

Conclusion and Recommendations

While some progress has indeed been made on some of the items of the five-year plan, in general, implementation is only beginning. In view of the plan’s complexity and the limitations of the local Arab authorities, additional delays can be expected. At the same time, it is hoped that some of the barriers will be removed in the future, and the plan’s implementation may even gain momentum, mainly because important government ministries are working persistently to advance the plan. Notable among these are the Ministry of Finance and its budgetary agencies and the Authority for the Economic Development of the Minorities Sector in the Ministry for Social Equality. They act together with officials in the Arab leadership, recognizing that full implementation of the plan is essential.

Beyond this, there is a difficult problem at the heart of the scene. On the one hand, the government is acting, albeit slowly, to advance the plan, as part of its declared policy of narrowing the severe gaps between the Arab minority and the Jewish majority and promoting the economic and social integration of Arab citizens within Israeli society. It appears that the government has adopted the notion of integration for strengthening the national economy and for ensuring stability and public order. On the other hand, the same government and some of its ministers have sent messages of exclusion to the Arab community, which are echoed in the political, social, and cultural spheres. This has severely damaged the trust of the Arab community in both the government itself and its intentions, and has encouraged anti-Arab groups and voices of hatred in the Jewish community, thereby widening the rift between Jews and Arabs in Israel.

This dual approach has been reflected in the recent events in Umm al-Hiran, an unrecognized Bedouin village, in which Jewish policeman Erez Levy and Bedouin teacher Yaqub Abu al-Qian were killed. This grave incident has severely damaged the sensitive relations between the majority and the minority, eroding the already low level of trust among the Arabs in the government’s intentions as well as the credibility of the police, creating a situation of risk and possible uncontrolled escalation, and greatly endanger the five-year plan’s chances of success.

We emphasize: the inclusion of Arabs in the state will not rest only on improving their economic situation, with all the importance of narrowing gaps. Realizing the vision of integration requires perceiving the Arabs normatively, publicly, and practically as fully equal citizens.