Israel Economy Ministry, World Bank Ink Deals To Bring Israeli Agro-Tech to Africa

November 20, 2017 | During a visit to the World Bank headquarters in Washington D.C., Israel’s Minister of Economy and Industry Eli Cohen signed an agreement with the World Bank to bring Israeli agricultural technologies to Africa. The agreements will focus on ICT, water, and agriculture to encourage developing countries to adopt Israel’s innovative approaches and technologies. Two additional representatives from Israel’s Ministry of Economy will be sent to Kenya and Ghana in 2018. The meeting was preceded by additional events to launch a new cooperation agreement between Israel’s Ministry of Economy and the agricultural unit of the Bank. In July 2016, the Israeli government transferred funds for knowledge-sharing activities in water, cyber protection, and agriculture, in order to strengthen ties with Africa, which was followed up by the signing of three agreements with the World Bank. The agreement enables Israeli companies in these fields to participate in World Bank projects in Africa. Cohen also signed an agreement to expand the “Tech Emerge” program, established in 2015 to help bring innovative technologies to emerging markets.