Ex-Soviet Union Russian Immigration in the Scientific Development of the Country

Due to political events in the former USSR, almost one million Jews have migrated to Israel since the beginning of the 1990s, comprising one- sixth of the total population.

Jewish immigrants from the former Soviet Union (commonly referred to in Israel as Russians) represent a major advantage for the country's future. Initially this great influx increased unemployment, intensified housing problems, and strained the government budget. At the same time however, the immigrants brought to the economy scientific and professional expertise of substantial value. Many skilled and experienced people, including 60 to 70 international-level scientists, have been fully integrated into the Israeli economy. Israel continues to actively recruit renowned scientists.

The Ministry of Science and Technology has also allocated a special budget for subsidies to research centers situated in the peripheral areas of the country, away from the large coastal population centers near Haifa and Tel Aviv. However, it is the Ministry of Commerce and Industry's initiative to create technology incubators that is the most remarkable of all Israeli efforts in this area. In 1993, with a budget of $50 million, the ministry approved 148 projects (of which 79 were proposed by immigrants) to be carried out in 24 technopoles for creating and developing future products. These 24 centers already employ 650 researchers, of which 513 are recent immigrants. These incubators are indicative of the integration efforts aimed at helping the former Soviet scientists to develop the Israeli economy through innovation.