The budget for the Ministry of Security was raised to 83 billion shekels and the police to more than 24 billion shekels.

 

This morning, the Mossawa Center circulated a special working paper on the impact of proposed changes in government ministry budgets on the Arab community to Knesset members, local authorities, and Arab associations. The Knesset discussed and approved an increase in the budget deficit and will discuss today the detailed budgets of the ministries, less than a month before the end of the fiscal year.

 

Last week, the Israeli government approved an amendment to the state's general budget for the fiscal year 2023, ultimately totaling 636 billion shekels, an increase of 26 billion shekels from the original budget approved at the beginning of the current year. This significant increase in the general budget also means an increase in the government deficit by 26 billion shekels. The government was forced to make these changes and deepen the financial deficit due to the deterioration of the security and economic situation following the war on Gaza.

 

The working paper was prepared by Mr. Mohammad Abulil, head of the Economic Unit at the Mossawa Center. It addressed the changes that occurred in the state budget, including a systematic impoverishment policy towards the Arab community, and the increased allocation for the army and militarization of the police at the expense of civil and social services.

 

Deepening the financial deficit will affect the cost of living and rising prices, which in turn will hit the poor sectors in the country, including the Arab community, where nearly half live below the poverty line. The budget also significantly disadvantages Arab private schools and the budgets for building classrooms in Arab towns.

 

The working paper pointed out the failure to pass all the budgets of Plan 550 for economic and social development of the Arab community, which aims to reduce economic and social disparities. The implementation of the plan was partial. The plan was supposed to be about 30 billion shekels over five years (2022-2026), meaning that each year, government ministries were supposed to implement partial plans of 6 billion shekels each in areas such as road development, agriculture, industrial zones, building classrooms, social welfare, health, culture, and sports. The report indicates that the government did not approve the transfer of all the budgets designated to bridge the gaps in mixed cities.

 

The Mossawa Center warns that the budget allocated to implement the government's decision not to transfer budgets will lead to the suspension of important projects for the development of Arab towns and the reduction of disparities.