Former Knesset member Eren Margalit lauds prospect of India-Israel cooperation

Jerusalem [Israel], November 8 : Former Knesset member Eren N Margalit on Monday said that he would like to see more cooperation between the countries of India and Israel in the field of startups and technology.
While talking to ANI about India's startup prospects, Founder and Executive Chairman, JVP, Margalit said, "The skills and qualities, the management skills and innovation, they bring on the table, it would be great to cooperate."
"There is cooperation between Israeli and Indian companies on the basis of software and enterprise. I would like to see more Israeli businesses being set up in India and more Indian businesses being set up in Israel. I would also like to see more investment into the countries from both sides," he said.
Margalit also emphasised the several areas where the two countries can cooperate such as food and climate technology.
"There are many areas such as fintech and software. Also, new cooperation around food tech as India is looking for new agricultural and water strategies. One of the biggest initiatives we are working on and maybe can work on together with the Indian government and Indian business community is climate technology," he said.
While talking about the business scenario in India, he said that India has been very strong in building the backbone for many international tech countries around the world.
He further said that cooperation can take place anywhere whether it is Delhi, Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Mumbai or Varanasi.
"I love all the Indian places and I have had great fun there," he said.
Margalit said that healthcare, climate and cyber tech are some areas where we can work together and bring some great development for the coming generations.
Erel N. Margalit, the former member of the Knesset has been elected twice to the Israeli Parliament as a member of the Labor Party, serving from 2013 to 2017.
He founded JVP, an internationally recognized venture capital fund in 1993. Under his leadership, JVP continues to be ranked by Preqin as one of the top-performing funds in the world.
JVP created more than 160 companies, facilitated many IPOs on NASDAQ, and orchestrated an additional 28 industry sales to leading international companies.
He is considered one of the chief architects of Start-Up Nation and has brought innovation and entrepreneurial leadership to the country's most pressing economic and social challenges.
He also holds a Doctor of Philosophy from Columbia University for his thesis "Entrepreneurs of History: The Outstanding Leader in the Historical Enterprise."
Earlier today, the Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem in charge of foreign relations, economic development and tourism, Fleur Hassan-Nahoum said that a diplomatic relationship with India is very important for Israel as both countries share similar strengths and challenges.
"It is very important for us. Our Prime Ministers are very close friends. We have trade and innovation collaborations. We have similar strengths and similar challenges. We hope our relationship will go from strength to strength," Fleur Hassan-Nahoum, Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem said in response to a question on the importance of bilateral ties.
Earlier, Israeli diplomat Roey Gilad spoke to ANI about the growing cooperation between the two countries.
"A strong relationship has been developed between Israel and India in previous decades. It's on the leadership level as well. Cooperation between India as a global superpower and Israel as a regional superpower has risen too," Roey Gilad, Ambassador, Center for Policy Research, Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told ANI.
This comes in the backdrop of Benjamin Netanyahu's recent win in the Israeli general elections. Netanyahu and his allies won enough seats to form a majority government in Israel's parliament.
The final count showed Netanyahu, backed by an alliance of extreme-right parties, would return to power with 64 seats, while his main rival, centrist Yair Lapid and his bloc of the current coalition government, garnered 51 seats.