The Economic Cooperation Foundation (ECF, Heb.: הקרן לשיתוף פעולה כלכלי) was founded by Dr. Yair Hirschfeld (the initiator of the

Oslo Peace Process The Oslo Accords are a pair of agreements between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO): the Oslo I Accord, signed in Washington, D.C., in 1993;

), former Minister of Justice Dr.

Yossi Beilin Yosef "Yossi" Beilin ( he, יוסף "יוסי" ביילין, born 12 June 1948) is an Israeli politician who has served in multiple ministerial and leadership positions in the Israeli government. Much of his political career was in the Labour Pa ...

at the end of 1990 as a

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

, non-governmental track II

think tank A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governmenta ...

, whose objectives are to build, maintain and support

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

Palestinian Palestinians ( ar, الفلسطينيون, ; he, פָלַסְטִינִים, ) or Palestinian people ( ar, الشعب الفلسطيني, label=none, ), also referred to as Palestinian Arabs ( ar, الفلسطينيين العرب, label=non ...

and Israeli-

Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...

cooperation in the political, economic, and civil society spheres in support of creating a sustainable Permanent Status based on a

two-state solution The two-state solution to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict envisions an independent State of Palestine alongside the State of Israel, west of the Jordan River. The boundary between the two states is still subject to dispute and negotiation ...

. Based in

Tel-Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...

, the ECF is led today by Dr. Hirschfeld, Dr. Beilin and its Treasurer Mr. Boaz Karni. Dr. Nimrod Novik is Chairman of the ECF Executive Board. Over the years, ECF has developed a unique network of intimate relations with all the relevant players – Israel, Palestine,

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...

, America, Europe, and others. In turn, this has enabled the ECF to create

coalition A coalition is a group formed when two or more people or groups temporarily work together to achieve a common goal. The term is most frequently used to denote a formation of power in political or economical spaces. Formation According to ''A Gui ...

s, design concepts, suggest creative solutions and build structures that have been translated into agreed-upon agendas and specific proposals. These, in turn, have offered policy makers, local, regional and international players practical tools, mechanisms, ideas and means to facilitate progress in practical as well as political issues related to the strengthening of the peace process. ECF's professional input can be found in every initiative for Palestinian-Israeli peace since the inception of the Oslo Process.Track Two Diplomacy and Jerusalem
2017. Najem et al. Routledge. Ed. The ECF initially began and led the secret talks in

Oslo, Norway Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of i ...

that resulted in the signing of the Declaration of Principles (DOP) in September 1993. The ‘Architects of Oslo’, then developed the ‘ Beilin–

Abu Mazen Mahmoud Abbas ( ar, مَحْمُود عَبَّاس, Maḥmūd ʿAbbās; born 15 November 1935), also known by the kunya Abu Mazen ( ar, أَبُو مَازِن, links=no, ), is the president of the State of Palestine and the Palestinian Natio ...

Understanding’, the first jointly developed detailed concept of a comprehensive Permanent Status Understanding between Israel and a Palestinian State. Though not officially affiliated, Dr. Yossi Beilin as well as other members of ECF were central to the drafting of the Geneva Accord,A Possible Peace Between Israel and Palestine
Klein, M. 2007. the most detailed proposal for a Permanent Status Accord negotiated by those with close relations to both the Israeli and Palestinian political establishments. ECF also played a noticeable role in preparing for the Israeli Disengagement Plan from Gaza and parts of the northern

West Bank The West Bank ( ar, الضفة الغربية, translit=aḍ-Ḍiffah al-Ġarbiyyah; he, הגדה המערבית, translit=HaGadah HaMaʽaravit, also referred to by some Israelis as ) is a landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...

in August–September 2005. The best known ECF contribution was in facilitating the successful purchase of the settlers

greenhouse A greenhouse (also called a glasshouse, or, if with sufficient heating, a hothouse) is a structure with walls and roof made chiefly of Transparent ceramics, transparent material, such as glass, in which plants requiring regulated climatic condit ...

s, which were then be turned over to the Palestinians in order to provide an economic outlet for the struggling Palestinian economy. Despite the destruction of many of these by Arab groups, these greenhouses have provided a critical employment opportunity for nearly 3000 Palestinians, from the 4000 who had previously been employed there, and serve as a first step in the expansion of the Palestinian agricultural export industry, the most viable economic sector for the Palestinians.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Non-governmental organizations involved in the Israeli–Palestinian peace process Israeli disengagement from Gaza Foundations based in Israel 1990 establishments in Israel Organizations established in 1990