World on the move; first stop Israel
Articles 1) and 3) are about leaving Israel and coming to Israel. In between are some statistics about world migration.
Jewish immigrants from Ukraine arrive at Ben-Gurion Airport in 2012. Photo, Courtesy
‘Four out of 10 new immigrants to Israel consider returning to country of origin’
By Sam Sokol, JPost
February 21, 2015
Six out of 10 new immigrants, or olim, polled responded that the primary barrier to employment in Israel is a lack of knowledge regarding the Israeli job market.
Around 40% of recent immigrants to Israel consider returning to their countries of origin, according to a study carried out by Gvahim, a nongovernmental organization that works for the integration of immigrant academics. The NGO surveyed 300 new arrivals, 59% of from the United States and France.
Six out of 10 new immigrants, or olim, polled responded that the primary barrier to employment in Israel is a lack of knowledge regarding the Israeli job market, with an additional 28% citing language difficulties.
An overwhelming majority of 88% said having good personal connections is the primary factor involved in obtaining a job in the country while only 24% said that this is the case abroad.
A quarter of those polled stated that the most important move in integrating into the local job market is involvement in government sponsored training programs. Some 22% said there needs to be “a change of attitude by employers regarding hiring olim,” while one in five called for a provision of incentives for hiring immigrants.
“The survey’s findings indicate that the olim population faces specific difficulties in their integration into the Israeli job market,” said Gvahim CEO Gali Shahar. “In view of the recent waves of anti-Semitism in Europe, the task of finding a livelihood for the thousands of olim expected to arrive in Israel becomes a national challenge, which requires the participation of all the bodies involved, government ministries, the business sector and employers from other sectors.”
The government is working on guidelines for easing the transition for accredited professionals.
Last week the cabinet approved a NIS 180 million aliya plan for France, Belgium and Ukraine and within the next month, the Economy Ministry is expected to complete an inquiry into recognizing the French BTS higher technicians’ degree.
Speaking with The Jerusalem Post last week, Dr. Dov Maimon, a French expert who authored the proposal of the Jewish People Policy Institute in Jerusalem, said that the government plan lacked such elements as tax incentives for companies that relocate as well as provisions for business incubators and temporary work permits for physicians and other professionals.
In a statement on Sunday, JPPI president Avinoam Bar-Yosef called the initiative a “positive step in the right direction,” but said that it “takes into account less than one-third of those eligible to make aliya from Western Europe,” including 120,000 French and Belgian Jews who he described as “strong candidates for aliya.”
“The cabinet decision does not take into account JPPI’s recommendation to establish a special administrative unit within the Prime Minister’s Office to oversee and coordinate efforts among the various government agencies involved such a process.
Furthermore, the plan does not mention JPPI’s recommendation to encourage and assist in transferring Jewish-French owned business and investments to Israel, [and] to create appropriate places of employment for the French-speaking new immigrants,” he said.
In response to the Gvahim poll, Avi Zana, who heads the French immigration promotion organization Ami Israel, told the Post that just because a high percentage of immigrants think about emigration is not an indicator of a high rate of return.
Citing statistics that 75% of French Jews have thought about emigrating while the actual number that leaves is much lower, Zana said that 40% of new arrivals considering leaving “doesn’t mean they are going to come back.”
Economic integration is easier for French Jews than Americans, because many find work telecommuting or even flying back-and-forth between the two countries, he added.
Jewish Agency spokesman Avi Mayer commented:
As increasing numbers of Jews leave Europe, we have a unique opportunity to draw unprecedented aliya from Western countries to Israel. In order to do so, however, we must demonstrate that we are serious about helping new immigrants build their lives here. We welcome the government’s most recent steps to ease new immigrants’ integration into the Israeli workforce.
At the same time, we call for the development of a comprehensive national aliya strategy in order to ensure that Israel remains the No. 1 choice for Jewish emigrants from Europe and around the world.
UN, Department of Economic and Social Affairs • Population Division
In 2013, 231,522,200 people were classed as foreign migrants in the countries they were living in.
In western Asia, the top most popular countries for immigrants /migrants were:
1) Saudi Arabi,9,060,400; 2) United Arab Emirates, 7,827,000; 3) Jordan, 2,925,800; 4) Kuwait 2,028,100; 5) Israel, 2,046,900.Figures for countries with highest number of immigrants in 2013:
United States of America 46m; Russian Federation, 11m;
Germany, 10m, Saudi Arabia 9m
UAE, 8m; UK, 8m; France, 7m; Canada, 7m;
Australia, 6m; Spain, 6m.Figures from Index Mundi
76 countries experienced net immigration in 2013, 113 experienced net emigration in 2013.Country Net migration rate (migrant(s)/1,000 population)
1 Lebanon 83.82
2 Qatar 27.35
3 Zimbabwe 21.78
4 British Virgin Islands 17.69
5 Jordan 17.22
6 Libya 16.01
7 Cayman Islands 14.71
8 Singapore 14.55
9 Bahrain 13.6
10 United Arab Emirates 13.58…
51 Russia 1.69
52 Israel 1.68 per thousand of destination populationUkraine is fourth in the list of countries experiencing net emigration:(rate per thousand)
109 Bangladesh -0.02
110 Korea, North -0.04
111 India -0.05
112 Ukraine -0.06
Top 25 Destination Countries for Global Migrants over Time
1. United States, 2. Russian federation, 3. Germany, 4. Saudi Arabia 5. UAE, 6. UK,7, France. 8, Canada, 9, Australia, 10, Spain…..
Russian Jews undergo conversion classes. Photo by David Bachar
Immigration from Russia, Ukraine jumps in 2015
Citing the recent conflict between the former Soviet countries, Jewish Agency expects continued major rise in aliyah from FSU
By Judah Ari Gross, Times of Israel
June 25, 2015
Immigration from the former Soviet Union will dramatically increase in the coming year, Jewish Agency head Natan Sharansky said, based on projections from the first half of 2015.
In 2015, as of June 1 some 5,904 people immigrated to Israel from the former Soviet Union. Only 3,698 people had done so by the same point in 2014, representing a 59.64 percent increase, according to figures from the Immigration Absorption Ministry.
If immigration from the FSU keeps up this pace through the end of the year, Israel could see some 18,000 people arrive, up from the 11,860 in 2014.
The bulk of that jump in aliyah — the Hebrew term for immigration to Israel — came from Russia and Ukraine, which have been embroiled in a military conflict since February 2014.
Immigration from Russia in the first five months of 2015 was 2,464, up from 1,608 during the same period the year before.
The figures from Ukraine were even more dramatic, especially compared to the years before the fighting. So far this year 2,990 Ukrainians have moved to Israel; just 1,614 did so between January and May 2014, representing an 85.25% jump from the former Soviet republic.
Only 1,982 people in total moved from Ukraine to Israel in 2013, before the conflict began. If the immigration rate holds steady through the end of this year, over 10,000 Ukrainians can be expected to make aliyah in 2015.
The Jewish Agency told reporters the marked increase has been linked to both the military conflict directly and to the resulting economic downturn, which sent both countries into dangerous levels of inflation.
The European Union voted this week to extend its sanctions against Russia to ensure it fully implements Ukraine peace accords, officials said.
The 28-nation bloc initially imposed travel bans and asset freezes against Russian and Ukrainian figures for their part in the crisis but then reacted sharply after Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 was shot down in July over territory held by pro-Moscow rebels.
Brussels hit Russia’s banking, oil and defense sectors hard and, along with the United States, has warned more sanctions could follow unless Moscow lives up to its Minsk commitments in February to withdraw support for the rebels and use its influence with them to implement the accord.
Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
French Jews arrive in Israel 2013. Photo from World Jewish Congress, uncredited.
French immigration starts to slow
Despite a combination of rising antisemitism and an economic slump, Jewish immigration from France in 2015 has so far not lived up to its high expectations.
By Cynthia Blank, Arutz Sheva
June 18, 2015
Despite a combination of rising antisemitism and an economic slump, Jewish immigration from France in 2015 has so far not lived up to its high expectations.
According to figures from the Ministry of Immigrant Absorption, 1,710 French Jews immigrated to Israel in the first five months of the year, a 19% drop from the same period last year.
In 2014, a record number of 7,086 French Jews arrived in Israel, with France the leading provider of new Israeli citizens for that year.
Early forecasts presented in the wake of a spate of terror attacks that struck Paris in January predicted that immigration from France would double to 15,000 this year, but the slow start makes that seem unlikely.
Despite the decline, Immigrant Absorption Minister Ze’ev Elkin was optimistic, assuring French community leaders in Israel that figures will jump considerably with the help of a major immigration wave expected this summer.
Elkin asserted his Ministry’s figures do not take into account French Jews who arrived in Israel on tourist visas and then changed their status. “The drop is not as dramatic as it looks,” he told Haaretz.
But, while Jewish immigration from France was down in January-May, it was soaring from Russia and Ukraine, likely a result of rising instability in these two countries.
Naftali Bennett schmoozes with a Russian immigrant for the 2015 election. Ashkelon, February 2015. Photo By Reuters.
According to the Ministry’s figures, 2,938 Ukrainian Jews have arrived in Israel between January and May while another 2,435 came from Russia – representing an 82% and 51% jump, respectively.
Immigration from Italy also went up dramatically in the first few months of this year, albeit with smaller numbers, with 143 Italian Jews moving to Israel, 46% more than at this time last year.
In total, 10,023 Jews have immigrated to Israel in the first five months of 2015 – up 20% from January-May in 2014.
French immigration to Israel surges in summer of 2015
Five months after Paris terror attack targeting Jews, 25% more French Jews moved to Israel in early 2015 than in the same period in 2014
By Itamar Eichner, Ynet news
June 19, 2015
The number of French Jews who have made, or are making aliyah to Israel between January and August 2015, is 25% higher than that same period.
The number of immigrants from France rose from 4,000 in 2014 to 5,100 in same period in 2015. The numbers where submitted to Immigrant Absorption minister Ze’ev Elkin by the Heads of French Jewish organizations.
In the wake of the January massacre at a kosher market in Paris, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on Europe’s Jews to make aliyah to Israel. The Immigrant Absorption Ministry estimates that by the end of 2015 the number of immigrants from France will reach 9,000, compared to 7,200 in 2014.
In order to highlight the gravity of that number, the names were submitted to minister Elkin written on two long scrolls, prepared by Jewish Agency representatives in France. The representatives traditionally send the scrolls to the head of the Jewish community in France, and he in turn exhibits the scrolls at one of Paris’s synagogues.
The data was given to Minister Elkin in a meeting focusing on ways to expand the Aliyah of French Jews to Israel.
“According to the indications we have, we are preparing for a big wave of olim from France this summer,” Elkin said.
“In order for their absorption to be smoother, we need to listen to the new immigrants. That’s my belief. Even the most skilled and professional official doesn’t know better than the Oleh what he needs. I say this having been a new immigrant, and having dealt with the issue for years,” he said.
The minister asked to convene a special meeting on the issue of Ulpans (Hebrew schools), with new proposals on streamlining the process. He claimed that the matter of learning Hebrew suffers from a lack in budgeting however assured that government has made special decisions on the issue.