Here is Your Essay on Israel

Israel is an advanced industrial state with high levels of technological development. Except for a few oil-rich Gulf States (Ku­wait, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates) whose economies have pros­pered from the revenues of a single commodity, it enjoys the highest standard of living among the nations of Southwest Asia. Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of its development is the speed and effi­ciency with which the Israelis have transformed their country into a strong and prosperous nation out of extremely limited natural resources.

Heavy subsidiza­tion has come from Jewish communities in the West, particularly in the United States and Germany, but the Israelis have built their economy out of practically nothing by hard work and careful planning. The technical expertise of the thousands of skilled and professional European and Rus­sian immigrants during the 1960s and 1970s provided an essential core of workers for the country’s economic reconstruction.

Mineral resources of the nation (parti­cularly of coal and iron one) are limited but include potash, bromine, and magne­sium, the latter two being obtained from the waters of the Dead Sea. Copper ore, phosphates, gypsum, and oil are also found. Oil and natural gas exist in modest amounts in the northern Negev and south of Jerusalem, and near Beersheba. Limited amounts of these have been exploited since the 1950s.

Some hydro power resources are potentially available in the Jordan River Valley and the Golan Heights. Elec­tricity is generated primarily from thermal stations and is under government control; the government provides it to agriculture and industry at favorable rates. Israel has built two atomic reactors with U.S. assis­tance near Tel Aviv and in the Negev with French help. Industry forms a significant compo­nent of the country’s economy, and nearly 20 percent of the labor force is engaged in manufacturing. Close to 80 percent of all the exports consist of manufactured goods. Nearly one-third of the country’s total im­ports are in industrial raw materials.

To reduce the cost of these imports, Israel has built a sizable merchant marine that grossed over 650,000 tons in 1992. Defi­cient in most minerals, Israel has vigorously pursued precision industries (diamond cutting and polishing and optical goods, for example) with the help of a la­bor force that consisted largely of skilled European immigrants.

Israel is the world leader in diamond-cutting; cut and pol­ished diamonds form the largest export item (25 percent of all exports) centered primarily in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. Oil refining is located at Haifa. A small steel plant built at Tel Aviv for the manufacture of heavy machinery and defense weapons has not proved to be an economic proposi­tion but has been kept for strategic purposes.

The manufacture of chemical fertilizers from the potash of the Dead Sea and from the phosphates found in the Negev; copper-based manufacture nears the port of Elat; and construction of buildings to accommodate a large number of immi­grants is other major industries. In addition, a wide array of light industries is located in all the major cities (Tel Aviv, Yafo, Jerusalem, and Haifa) and craft goods are produced on kibbutzim and moshrava.

The light industries include the manufacture of precision instruments (electronic and electric goods, watches, op­tical materials), shoes, ready-made clothes, plastic products of various kinds, and a large number of consumer goods. Foreign investment is vigorously pursued and low rates of taxation and favorable terms for setting up industries are provided to for­eign and domestic investors.

A close working relationship exists between work­ers, owners of the industries, Histadrut (a trade union federation), and the govern­ment, although high wages of the workers and the high cost of imported raw materi­als often tend to price many Israeli goods out of the world market. Israeli industry has approximately tripled in extent since 1950, and along with construction and trade account for about 40 percent of the value of the nation’s total domestic pro­duction.

Although agriculture forms a minor part of Israel’s economy and only 3 per­cent of the labor force is engaged in agricultural activities, it is highly mecha­nized and despite adverse natural circumstances, has been developed to a de­gree that compares favorably with the agricultural techniques used in the ad­vanced countries.

The area of land under cultivation has been greatly increased since the founding of the state in 1948, and ex­tensive irrigation has been provided to develop farmland. In 1948, Israel produced only one-third of the food it needed; by the early 1990s it produced enough fruits and vegetables, poultry and eggs, and milk and dairy products to meet all domestic needs, although a small amount of the grain required is still imported.

The chief commercial crop and most important agricultural product is citrus fruit, primarily oranges, ninety percent of which are exported. Citrus production, se­verely affected during the wars, remains valuable for export purposes. Non-citrus fruits (such as melons, bananas, and peaches), and vegetables are also grown and exported to Europe in winter. A vari­ety of other commercial crops that registered significant gains during the last three decades are sugar beets, peanuts, cot­ton, sisal (used in the manufacture of paper), and flowers.

A major agricultural problem is scar­city of water. Irrigation facilities were greatly expanded during the 1970s and 1980s. “Water from the Jordan and Yarqon rivers and from Lake Tiberius (El Ghor area) is piped to farms even in the Negev Desert. Practically all of the country’s po­tential water resources have been tapped.

Further expansion of agriculture involves intensifying the yield from land already ir­rigated or getting more water by cloud seeding, reducing the amount of evapora­tion, desalinizing sea water, and expanding desert farming in the Negev. Nearly one- fifth of Israel’s territory is given to cultivation. Forests cover only 7 percent of the surface; and fully two-thirds of the land is unsuited for permanent cultivation.

A special feature of Israel’s agricultural development is the kibbutz, an agricultural settlement in which most farm families and agricultural workers live. Many of the early immigrants who entered the agricul­tural labor force before independence were settled in these communal farms or rural settlements, each one of which was known as a kibbutz (“ingathering”).

Farming is done collectively, and management is by majority consent. No wages are paid, and no personal property is permitted except for married members who are given sepa­rate living quarters. The largely self-sufficient kibbutz usually practices a mixed form of agriculture, growing vegeta­bles, cotton, grains, and producing meat. These kibbutzim are oriented towards ag­riculture but some have developed small manufacturing enterprises producing such goods as plywood and plastics. The sale of products is through cooperative organizations.

There are also villages where land is privately owned. In this second form of ag­ricultural settlement, personal property is allowed and family members are housed separately. Produce is marketed though co­operatives collectively. These settlements, in part communal or cooperative, are moshava.

The number of Jewish rural set­tlements increased greatly during the first few decades after independence; in 1960 these numbered close to 1,000, and in large part consisted of moshava. A large propor­tion of later settlers was of urban origin and preferred to opt for cities, but many were reluctantly placed in rural settle­ments and trained as successful farmers.

As a tiny fraction of the labor force is engaged in agricultural activity, the government has incorporated farm training into regular army service, which applies to all able- bodied men and women. Israel’s most fertile cultivated land is in the plains along the Mediterranean, the Plain of Esraelon the Jordan Valley south of Lake Tiberius, and the Beersheba area. The largely arid Negev region is now being developed to extend the agricultural land.

Ninety percent of Israel’s population lives in cities, and urbanization has rapidly increased since the inception of the nation. The largest increase has been in the two larger conurbations of Tel Aviv-Yafo- Haifa and of the city of Jerusalem, which together contain nearly a quarter of Israel’s population.

The authorities are attempting to reduce overconcentration of population in these areas by building new towns, pri­marily to accommodate new immigrants and to serve as centers for regional settle­ment or to fulfill special economic tasks such as the manufacture of textiles, cloth­ing, or machinery.

The ancient and historic city of Jerusa­lem (population: close to 600,000) is the national capital and has distinct Jewish and Arab sections, the New and Old cities. As a holy city for Christians, Jews, and Mus­lims, it contains numerous shrines for them such as Mount Zion, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, Mount of Olives, the Wailing Wall, and El Aksa Mosque, which are concentrated in the Old City.

Israel oc­cupied the Old City (previously under Jordan’s control) during the 1967 war, and now controls the unified city. Jerusalem has a sizable manufacturing component that includes diamond cutting and polish­ing, plastic goods, and cement making.

An important city and industrial cen­ter is the twin city and port of Tel Aviv-Yafo (population: approx. 360,000). Yafo (historically Jaffa) is an ancient city, dating back to the 15th century B.C., but the newer component of Tel Aviv is a modern city dating from 1907. Tel Aviv is the nation’s premier cultural and commer­cial center, along with Jerusalem.

The twin cities have an artificial harbor, and next to Haifa perform important port functions. Nearly one-half of Israel’s manufacturing plants are located in the Greater Metro­politan Area of Tel Aviv. Main industries are: textiles, clothing, food processing, to­bacco, engineering, metals, furniture, printing, and electric and electronic equip­ment.