Akko, ISRAEL: March 4, 2025 – The Lauder Employment Center (LEC), established by Ronald S. Lauder and Jewish National Fund-USA, has released its Annual Report for 2024, showcasing groundbreaking achievements in employment development and economic growth in Israel’s Galilee and Negev regions.
Despite a year of unprecedented challenges, including wartime disruptions, the LEC empowered 7,637 individuals through strategic programs aimed at job creation, small business support, and workforce integration. The center’s initiatives directly strengthened Israel’s national resilience, addressing economic recovery, social mobility, and population retention in these critical regions.
Addressing Regional Employment Gaps
The Galilee and Negev face ongoing disparities in employment opportunities compared to Israel’s central region. Jewish National Fund-USA has tackled these challenges head-on by promoting high-quality jobs to narrow socioeconomic gaps and retain local talent, supporting small and medium-sized businesses as key drivers of regional economic stability, integrating diverse populations including women, the Arab community, military veterans, and evacuees into the workforce, and enhancing Israel’s strategic security by strengthening innovation-based industries.
War-Driven Economic Recovery Efforts
The current conflict deeply impacted businesses, workers, and entire communities in the North and South. In response, Jewish National Fund-USA, through the LEC, rapidly deployed targeted employment programs to rebuild war-affected economies through employer incentives and investment in local businesses, support displaced residents through job retraining and workforce reintegration, and revitalize small businesses by offering grants, loans, and digital marketing tools to keep operations running.
Strategic Growth in 2025 and Beyond
With offices in Be’er Sheva, Kiryat Shmona, and a network of partnerships, the LEC is set to expand its impact in 2025 by developing new employment hubs across the Negev and Galilee, advancing workforce programs for displaced residents, women, and Arab communities, strengthening strategic partnerships with academia, industry, and government bodies, and expanding small business and startup support, particularly in high-tech, energy, and agriculture.
“Employment is the key to Israel’s long-term resilience,” said Michal Shiloah Galnoor, CEO of Western Galilee Now, the operator of the LEC. “We are proud to be on the front lines, helping thousands of Israelis rebuild their futures while strengthening Israel’s periphery.”
For more information on the Lauder Employment Center’s initiatives and partnership opportunities, visit jnf.org/lec. To support Jewish National Fund-USA's work for the land and people of Israel, visit jnf.org/donate.
