First target: The Heads of the European Financial Community
The Minister of Finance Dr. Yuval Steinitz, and Acting Director General of the Ministry of Finance, Mr. Doron Cohen, joined by leading members of the Israeli business community, headed this morning for Europe to attend the Bloomberg Sovereign Debt Conference, with the aim of promoting Israel as an economic haven and attractive investment center.
The delegation accompanying the minister will include the Capital Market, Insurance and Savings Commissioner in the Ministry of Finance, Prof. Oded Sarig; the Chairman of the ISCAR company, Mr. Eitan Wertheimer; the General Manager of Intel Israel and Vice President of Intel International, Ms. Maxine Fassberg; the Chief Scientist in the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor, Mr. Avi Hasson; the CEO of the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, Ms. Esther Levanon, and the former Director General of the Ministry of Finance, Mr. Chaim Shani.
The Bloomberg Sovereign Debt Conference is being held to discuss developments in the European debt crisis and assess opportunities for attractive and sustainable investments. At the conference, the Israeli delegation will meet with senior European policymakers and high-level executives of European financial institutions and spell out to them the advantages of the Israeli economy against the background of today's global economic challenges.
The activities of the minister and the delegation at the conference are one facet of an international public information campaign that is being launched by the Ministry of Finance to attract investments to Israel and exploit the opportunities presented by the complex global financial situation. The campaign is based on an understanding of the importance of foreign investments at the present juncture for sustaining economic growth. It will be conducted in cooperation with some of the world's leading economic media outlets, ensuring a wide reach that includes key financial decision makers.
The visit of the Minister of Finance to Germany follows a series of meetings held by him in recent months with officials in India, the United States and China, with a view to generating foreign interest in investment opportunities in Israel and expanding Israeli exports.
The conference in Germany is being organized by Bloomberg and will receive extensive media coverage, including on Bloomberg TV which caters to an investor and business audience that is of particular importance for Israel. Bloomberg TV and Bloomberg Business Week are media leaders, worldwide and especially in Europe, and they exert great influence on decision makers in government and in the business world.
