The Pulse of The State of Israel

Tel Aviv-Yafo is the business and commercial capital of the State of Israel. The city is a huge employment and production center and was recently proclaimed one of the ten high-tech capitals of the world.

As a matter of policy, the Tel Aviv-Yafo municipality works to increase investment in the city and to create a reservoir of investment opportunities for entrepreneurs to serve the needs of it’s residents and those of the million visitors it hosts daily. As the responsible authority, we strive to strike a balance between the market forces that seek to expand commercial and business activity within the city and our aspiration to enhance the quality of life of its residents. We believe that if we can succeed in combining the advantages of the private sector, with its proven efficiency in establishing and operating business, and those of the public authority, which can lower the entrepreneur’s economic risk, we can increase the scope of overall investments.

Tel Aviv - Yafo’s Financial Status

Tel Aviv-Yafo’s municipal budget totals NIS 3/5 billion. The municipality has made a strategic decision to maintain a balanced budget and to increase investment in infrastructure development. And, Indeed, current budgetary deficits have gradually been decreased, as have operating costs, on the one hand, and, on the other, efforts have been made to increase income. Tel Aviv – Yafo’s financial strength is noteworthy particularly in view of Israel’s prolong economic depression and as compared with the financial position of other local authorities.

In 2002 the budgetary deficit dropped below one percent and, in 2003 and 2004, surplus were registered. At the same time, in 2000 the municipality began to increase its investment in infrastructure development throughout the city, and its annual investment in this realm exceeds half a billion New Israeli Shekels.

Maximum Tel Aviv

The New Tel Aviv-Yafo Resident Card that Doubles as a Credit Card. Tel Aviv-Yafo is the only city in Israel, which doesn’t suffice with providing customary municipal services, but also arranges for its residents to enjoy discounts and sales in local businesses.

In September 2003 the municipality, in cooperation with Leumi Card, launched a unique service – a new magnetic resident card called Maximum Tel Aviv, which grants holders all of the municipal benefits and discounts to which they are entitled, and also grants them discounts in local businesses and doubles as a credit card. To mark the card’s inauguration several promotions were offered, including a highly-discounted “Breakfast” Campaign and a “Culture” Campaign offering residents discounts un theaters, at the Tel Aviv Performing Arts Center, the Cinematheque and at local movie theaters.

The Tel Aviv Foundation

The Tel Aviv foundation, founded in 1977, has established more than 300 local projects and raised more than 200 million $ from a network of donors in the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Germany, Belgium, France, South America and Australia. The foundation works in full cooperation with the Tel Aviv-Yafo municipality in order to enhance the quality of life of local residents.

Foundation Goals

• Initiating and building projects for the welfare of residents in the fields of education, culture, sports and the environment.
• The establishment of a network of donors and support groups in Israel and abroad in order to raise funds to finance the above projects.
• Building, upgrading and managing projects from the planning stages through to their delivery to the municipality.

Educational tasks - The construction and upgrading of kindergartens, support in the operation of day-care centers, the establishment of childhood learning frameworks and computerized libraries, support in the program to prevent dropping out of high school, the financing of scientific educational programs throughout the municipal high school network and the construction of the Tel Aviv-Yafo Collage campus.

Welfare Tasks - The construction of golden age day centers, the construction and upgrading of family health stations, “Europe Cafe” – an activation program for Holocaust survivors, Martal - an activating program for emergency situations, support for physically challenged populations, and the construction of a treatment pool for special education frameworks.

Tasks in the Fields of Culture, Arts and Sports - Upgrading museums and the cinematheque – including the establishment of the Israel Cinema Center, support for arts and music centers and the construction of an acoustic shell in Ganei Yehoshua Park.

Worldwide Ties

Tel Aviv-Yafo is the home of 67 embassies. Moreover, most of the country’s economic and international activity takes place here – at the Israel Export Institute, the Manufactures’ Association, the Association of Bi-National Chambers of Commerce, the Israeli Stock Exchange, representations on international banking institutions, offices of law firms, chartered accountants and the media, and the headquarters of international companies. Tel Aviv-Yafo is the home of magnificent fair grounds and a convention center which host an array of local and international exhibits and conferences in such fields as telecommunications, high-tech and business.

This international activity serves as an essential resource for Tel Aviv-Yafo in the fulfillment of its role as the economic and cultural center of Israel. The Tel Aviv-Yafo Municipality has concluded twinning agreements with more than 20 sister cities around the world. A special municipal department coordinates all of the activity in the realm of international affairs and twin cities with the Israel Foreign Ministry and the respective diplomatic representations. This activity strengthens the status of Tel Aviv-Yafo as a cosmopolitan metropolis, a bridge connecting East and West and as a national, Middle Eastern cultural economic center.