Prior to the post-colonial establishment of independent African states, Israel's vision of Africa had been shaped by a common fate between Jewish people and African people. Both were in desperate need to establish themselves as their own entities and get out from under the rule of other nations.
In the late 1950s, while a renewed Israel was just embracing her new statehood, several African countries were also becoming independent. At that time, when Golda Meir was still serving as the foreign minister, she set up a diplomatic initiative with several of the newly established African states.
Israel was a young nation, surrounded by hostile Arab neighbors and looking for allies. Africa seemed like a great place to seek that alliance. After all, both were young nations looking to rebuild. Israel sent aid workers and military advisors to provide assistance in state building. They also focused on training programs in the areas of agriculture, healthcare, economic development and trade. One of the biggest achievements of that time was Israel introducing drip irrigation. About one-third of Africa was suffering from lack of water. Tens of millions of lives were saved by this Israeli technology, bestowed by Israel at no cost.
In 1957, Israel recognized Ghana’s independence and established diplomatic representation there. In 1958, Israel established the Agency for International Development Cooperation also known as MASHAV. This agency was created to help the emerging African states. In 1963, Israel established its first embassy in Nairobi, Kenya.
Unfortunately, in 1967 following the Six Day War, the alliances began to suffer. Any lasting goodwill was almost completely wiped out in 1973, after the Yom Kippur War and the Arab oil embargo against those trading with or supporting Israel. While the 1978 Israel-Egypt Camp David Accord and 1982 Israeli withdrawal from the Sinai Peninsula helped repair relations, the relationship did not regain its strength until more recently.
In the 2000s, growing economic and political importance, as well as resistance to Iran and Islamic extremism, have played a large role in the renewed diplomatic interest. In 2022, both Israel and African countries agreed to deepen cooperation in trade and economics, renewable energy, solar energy, recycling, the hydrogen economy and aerospace. Today things have restrengthened to the point that Israel has diplomatic ties with 46 African countries. They have established 12 embassies on the continent.
Israel currently has many beneficiary agencies doing vital work in Africa as well as agencies that want to foster growth and offer more Israeli and African partnerships. One such notable entity is Energiya Global Capital, founded by American-Israeli Yosef Abramowitz, which has been pioneering the solar industry in Israel and parts of Africa including an 8.5 megawatt solar energy plant in Rwanda. IsraAid has been at the forefront of responding to major humanitarian crises, sending relief teams to places such as Kenya and South Sudan.
Israel4Africa provides a platform for Israeli companies, as well as others, to find funding opportunities for industries including agriculture, communication technology, medical devices and water treatment. The Israeli non-profit “Eye from Zion” brought Israeli ophthalmologists with medical and training expertise to places such as Ethiopia where 1,000 patients received free treatment. Israeli Diplomat Ornit Avidar, used her company Waterways as a channel for Africans to access Israeli water technology. The contributions are numerous and in many ways just getting off the ground to create a brighter future and better alliance between Israel and Africa.
In recent years, Dr. Tomer Malchi and his colleagues at the Israeli aid and development agency Cultivaid have made it their mission to “...strengthen agricultural ecosystems in developing countries. They support the development and adaptation of knowledge and technology required to overcome current and future challenges of food security, climate change and poverty, while promoting agricultural-led economic growth. Their approach is rooted in the Israeli model, emphasizing the integration of research and development (R&D), extension services, market development, and the vital connections between these components, defined as the Agricultural Helix.”
With current projects in Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia Uganda and Morocco, Cultivaid combines the Jewish values that underpinned Israel’s early aid efforts in Africa with the technological expertise - especially in agro-tech - that Israel has become known for. They provide the tools, training, networks and project management expertise that African agro-entrepreneurs can use to create and sustain flourishing marketplaces of ideas, outcomes, and most of all vital food production in places where it is needed most.
Repairing the world isn’t an unclear expression of goodwill. It is a living mechanism to directly help those with pressing needs to help themselves and their communities. This is the ethic that guided Israel’s early forays in Africa, and this is what guides organizations like Cultivaid and others working to make life better across the African continent.