Israeli Leaders Warn Poverty Threatens National Stability, Call for Social Investment

Eli Cohen, CEO of the nonprofit "Pitchon Lev," warned at the National Economic Conference that poverty poses Israel's most urgent existential threat, surpassing traditional security concerns like missile attacks or Iranian threats. He projected that by 2054, over 51% of Israelis will live below the poverty line, a situation he described as turning Israel into a "third world country" unable to sustain itself geopolitically. Cohen emphasized that this crisis will unfold if current trends continue, without any negative changes needed to trigger disaster.

Cohen outlined Pitchon Lev’s three-stage model to permanently lift families out of poverty, focusing on immediate humanitarian aid, rights enforcement, and an 18-month employment transformation process. He highlighted the National Authority for Combating Poverty law as the most important social legislation in Israel's history, requiring government ministries to set measurable poverty reduction goals and report annually. Cohen also noted a shift in poverty demographics: 60% of aid recipients are working-age adults, many with academic degrees, indicating that neither employment nor education guarantees escape from poverty.

Other conference speakers addressed complementary social challenges and solutions. Maya Natan Mozar, CEO of the "Keshet" philanthropic fund, described innovative management of philanthropic capital, especially from the high-tech sector, to maximize social impact. She urged raising Israel’s tax deduction ceiling to encourage more giving. Ayelet Shahar Epstein shared how "Team Neta," founded after her son’s death in the October 7 attacks, trains young volunteers to support people with disabilities, aiming to build future social leadership.

Betal Albas Garbi, CEO of "Values in Sport," presented data showing community sports investments yield fourfold economic returns by improving health, welfare, and crime prevention. She called for government funding of organized social sports as a cost-saving national resilience strategy. Ayelet Razin Beit Or, former CEO of the Authority for the Advancement of Women, highlighted Israel’s poor gender equality rankings and the economic losses from excluding women from decision-making. She stressed that closing gender gaps could boost GDP by 40 billion shekels and criticized policy failures ignoring women’s needs.

The conference underscored that social resilience and equality are essential for Israel’s economic growth and national stability, urging policymakers to prioritize social solutions alongside traditional security concerns.