Social welfare and social security issues have not been at the center of the Israeli government’s agenda in the last two years. Although inequality and poverty levels in Israel remain especially high, with no real decline recorded since the beginning of the century, social spending in Israel has not grown appreciably during this period. Even the Committee for the War against Poverty, which was established by the government and submitted its conclusions in mid-2014, has not succeeded in placing poverty at the center of social discourse and governmental activities. Nevertheless, political circumstances have resulted in the adoption (or planned adoption) of some of the committee’s recommendations.
This introduction appears in the Center’s annual publication, State of the Nation Report 2016, edited by Prof. Avi Weiss.