Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Wednesday attended a Finance Ministry Budget Division economic event to mark 20 years since the implementation of the 2003 economic plan. Netanyahu led the plan as he served as Israel’s Finance Minister at the time.
“The three most important things that we have done are: Reining in government spending, reducing taxes and – without a doubt – the Becher reform,” said Netanyahu at the event.
“There was no credit market here,” he said. “It was crazy and we still have problems with this. The Finance Minister and I are discussing these questions, how to create additional sources of credit.”
“We have a knowledge-intensive economy. We now receive 20% of the start-ups in AI and a slightly larger number in cybernetics. The US is in first place, we are in second, and we are 1/1,000 of the world’s population.”
Netanyahu bragged that Israel could easily be among the world’s 10 leading economies and that his government’s activities have turned Israel into a rising force in the world.
“Israel’s status as an economic asset to the US and Western countries is rising all the time,” he added. “While it depends on various developments, its basis is to polish the economy and make it stronger and more competitive. Your mission is to ensure the future of Israel.”
After a terrible recession in 2002 and a devaluation of the Shekel against the US Dollar that saw it fall to an all-time low of more than 5 Shekels to the Dollar, in 2003 Israel’s economy rebounded and in 2004 the country had a growth in GDP of 4.8%.
