MASHAV is Hebrew for Israel's Agency for International Development Cooperation. MASHAV has consistently prioritized on poverty alleviation, provision of food security, empowerment of women and upgrade of basic health and education services. The formalization of these priorities in the UN-Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) has guided our efforts to put Israeli solutions at the service of developing countries in order to further their implementation. Our greatest contribution in Kenya, Malawi, Tanzania, Uganda and Seychelles is made in fields where Israel has a comparative advantage such as agriculture, health, water and education and has accumulated expertise in these areas during its own development experience as a young country facing similar challenges. Our belief is that training of trainers and capacity-building activities are the best way to achieve maximum impact in development activity and the surest guarantee of sustainable growth.
Our Mission
To lead Israel's efforts in empowering individuals and communities in need by sharing tools and expertise to achieve sustainable development and transformation within their own societies.
MASHAV, Israel’s Agency for International Development Cooperation at Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was established in 1958 following the vision of then Foreign Minister Golda Meir and Prime Minister David Ben Gurion to assist fellow nations overcome development challenges by sharing knowhow and technologies, which provided the basis of Israel’s own development.
MASHAV–is responsible for the design, coordination and implementation of the Sate of Israel’s development cooperation programs and humanitarian assistance efforts. By placing people at the heart of development, we focus our development activities on human capacity building and on the ‘training of trainers’ approach, sharing with other countries Israel’s own development experience and expertise as well as innovative technologies and tested methodologies. In alignment with the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda, and as a member of the family of nations, the State of Israel through MASHAV, shares the global responsibility of striving to overcome development challenges and contributing to the fight against poverty, while leaving no-one behind.
Priority Sectors
In line with the United Nations 2030 Agenda's sustainable development goals, OECD recommendations, good practice of DAC members MASHAV concentrates its aid and limits the number of sectors in which it operates, focusing its activities on areas in which Israel has a comparative advantage and accumulated expertise:
Food Security, Agriculture and Climate Change: MASHAV’s capacity building programs in the area of Food Security, Agriculture and Climate Change aim to harness the full potential of farmers, both men and women, with the goal of attaining the 2030 Agenda Sustainable Development Goal 2: To end hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture. Based on Israel's own agricultural and rural development experience to develop the agro and rural sectors under semi-arid and arid climatic conditions, MASHAV's activities include water management and irrigation; livestock production; environment and climate change; introduction of applied research and innovative approaches, agro-technologies and agricultural extension.
Education for All: MASHAV, in alignment with Goal 4 of ‘Ensuring Inclusive, Equitable and Quality Education and the Promotion of Lifelong Learning Opportunities for All’, addresses the need to develop alternative integrative learning opportunities to equip learners with 21st century skills to become familiar with new technologies to promote sustainable development. MASHAV shares the unique knowledge accumulated in Israel in addressing the direct challenge of achieving inclusive and quality education for all. MASHAV's activities range from early childhood education to adult education, special education and programs for at-risk youth as well as topics such as innovation and entrepreneurship for the educational system, ICT in education, capacity building for educators and school staff through civic awareness based on democratic principles.
Medicine, Public Health and Emergency Preparedness: Ensuring healthy lives and promoting the well-being at all ages is essential to sustainable development. MASHAV, in alignment with Goal 3, is committed to develop and implement inclusive and resilient health-related programs in order to provide equitable access to quality health services for all. Based on the experience accumulated in Israel in the field, MASHAV designs and implements professional activities characterized by a long-term approach, focusing on capacity building and community resilience. Over the last years, the international community has given more attention to the provision of health in emergency-situations. MASHAV shares with fellow nations Israel’s extensive experience in the field of urgent care medicine, trauma care and a highly developed system in preparation for and in response to mass-casualty incidents.
Community Development and Resilience: Civil society can serve as a catalyst for political, social and economic transformation and play a critical role in the achievement of the SDGs. It often represents the interests and needs of various sectors and echelons of society, including the most marginalized and disenfranchised communities. Resilient communities and civil societies also promote good governance, while demanding transparency of government institutions and policies, which strengthen community services, and advance adherence to the rule of law and universal human rights principles. MASHAV’s activities in community development present a unique blend of capacity building, preparedness and emergency management, and encouragement of collaborate action by strengthening the civil society, with gender mainstreaming and the promotion of gender equality as cross cutting issues.
Innovation and Entrepreneurship: In alignment with the 2030 Agenda, MASHAV promotes innovating entrepreneurship as a means of advancing growth and prosperity addressing entrepreneurship as a critical development tool and a driver of job creation, economic growth, gender equality and the realization of social gains. MASHAV professional capacity building programs in the field present both the governmental and the non governmental frameworks that promote Innovation and Entrepreneurship.
Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment: Women have a critical role to play in all of the Agenda 2030 as is especially represented in Goal 5. MASHAV considers the empowerment of women as a critical and central component of its development policy, relating to gender equality not only as a fundamental human right, but also as a necessary foundation for a peaceful, prosperous and sustainable world. MASHAV’s programs in the field focus on strengthening entrepreneurial skills and innovation through capacity building and the transfer of individual and community leadership skills and strategies related to women's economic empowerment, including the empowerment of rural women by ways of agricultural entrepreneurship, to contribute to income generation and employment. Rural and Urban Development The goal of eradicating poverty is achieved through the promotion of social-economic rural and urban development, while viewing the region as the basic unit for development and planning. MASHAV’s programs include professional training in the areas of regional and local competitivity; local economic development and strategies for poverty reduction; income generation activities in rural areas; strategic planning for local development; urban rehabilitation projects; development of sustainable rural tourism.
- Humanitarian Aid: As an active member of the international aid community, MASHAV is the body responsible for coordinating the State of Israel’s official humanitarian assistance program. Drawing on Israel’s vast experience in crisis response and field medicine, we rapidly organize and dispatch much needed supplies, medicines and urgent medical assistance in response to appeals from senior sources in the international community as well as to direct requests from affected countries. Along the years, Israel has sent humanitarian relief and assistance to more than 140 countries, saving numerous numbers of lives.