The transfer of IDF bases to the Negev and the establishment of the C4I Campus and the Intelligence Campus in the South was supposed to be a strategic move of first-rate socio-national importance. In my mind’s eye I have already seen “the plaque unveiling and ribbon cutting ceremony,” how such a move is taking shape, bolstering the periphery and transforming the capital of the Negev, Beersheba, into the cyber capital of the country and positioning of the Negev as Israel’s technological center. But constant disputes between the Finance, Transport and Defense ministries have distanced us from the goal to move the Negev forward in large strides. Those paying the highest price are the residents of the area.
A decade has passed since the government decided to pass a budget for the transfer of the IDF Intelligence Division and the C4I Directorate to the Negev. NIS 19 billion has been allocated for the move, but the recently published State Comptroller’s report indicates that, in practice, many of the bases have not yet been transferred because 93% of the personnel serving in the Intelligence Division and in the C4I Directorate do not live in the Negev. The report also reveals that since January 2016, the Barriers Committee has not convened to solve problems in the project and about 18 months have passed since Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu instructed the National Security Council to examine the disputed issues regarding the transfer of units to the Negev.
To date, no agreements have been reached regarding the definition of the eligible population and the amount of the grant that will be given to thousands of permanent force personnel that will include a residential package that supports their moving to the Negev. The State Comptroller noted in the report that the disputes and disagreement between the Defense Establishment, Finance Ministry and Transport Ministry constitute a barrier to the transfer of the Intelligence Division and the C4I Directorate to the Negev.
In 2014, Netanyahu promised that Beersheba would become the “cyber center of the Western Hemisphere.” As a resident of the Negev and as an academic who trains entire generations of engineers, I would be content if the capital of the Negev would become the cyber center of the Middle East and a magnet for start-up companies from Tel Aviv.
Israel Innovation Authority figures indicate that fewer than 1% of start-up companies in Israel have established themselves in Beersheba – only 70 start-up companies employing 2,500 engineers in a city of 220,000 residents. This is despite the fact that Beersheba has enormous potential as a metropolis to become the cyber capital and not just in terms of land reserves. It is a city with significant anchors: academic centers, such as Ben Gurion University; the Sami Shamoun Academic College of Engineering; the Soroka Medical Center and the hi-tech park. A variety of elements enable it to be independent. However, more public investment is needed to create suitable places of employment and a proper transport infrastructure to draw in all the residents of the nearby localities and even residents from the center. The central area of Israel has become congested; investment in the Negev will produce profitablity, wellbeing and a population equilibrium.
The economic press recently reported that the Israel Innovation Authority intends to launch another program to encourage hi-tech in Beersheba and promote innovation in the city. This is a welcome move that, first and foremost, inspires new hope and optimism for the future.
The relevant government ministries and military authorities have a duty to come together and discuss matters until white smoke, ala papal elections, is emitted, to put aside egos and controversy, join forces and look at the picture from an overall perspective. From a national strategic, economic, social and employment perspective, the promotion and development of the hi-tech/cyber industry in the Negev should continue to be a national mission.
The writer is rector of the Sami Shamoun Academic College of Engineering.