The State of South Carolina and Israel made official an agreement last week to establish a bilateral research and development initiative designed to enhance collaboration.
South Carolina Secretary of Commerce Bobby Hitt and Ofer Aviran, Consul General of Israel to the Southeast United States, signed the agreement in Columbia.
The agreement, which creates a funding mechanism for joint industrial research and development projects between Israeli and South Carolina companies and universities, will be carried out by South Carolina Research Authority (SCRA) and MATIMOP, the Israeli Industry Center for R&D, on behalf of the Office of the Chief Scientist of Israel’s Ministry of Economy.
The bilateral initiative between S.C. and Israel is intended to develop and strengthen economic, industrial, technological and commercial cooperation through joint industrial research and development projects conducted between South Carolina and Israeli companies and universities.
The technology sectors envisioned for this program consist of those areas where there appears to be the greatest overlap in capabilities and mutual interest between South Carolina and Israel. These areas include, but are not limited to: Biomedical and Life Sciences; Advanced Materials; Sustainable Energy/Water/Agriculture Systems; Transportation; Defense and Homeland Security and Insurance and Health Information Technology.
