HaMerkaz HaHakla'i (), also referred to simply as Merkaz Hakla'i, is an umbrella organization covering the economic and social functioning of a large part of the agricultural settlements in Israel. It is the executive of the , which was established in 1919. In English it has been variously called the Central Agricultural Office, or the Agricultural Executive Centre, one of the "national frameworks set up prior to the founding of the State". Carmel-Hakim, Esther
"Rebecca Sieff"
''Shalvi/Hyman Encyclopedia of Jewish Women''. 31 December 1999. ''Jewish Women's Archive''. Accessed 29 February 2024. It has been described as the main Jewish agricultural planning organisation of the British Mandate period, which connected the general workers'

trade union A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

(

Histadrut Histadrut, fully the New General Workers' Federation () and until 1994 the General Federation of Labour in the Land of Israel (, ''HaHistadrut HaKlalit shel HaOvdim B'Eretz Yisrael''), is Israel's national trade union center and represents the m ...

) and the associated

kibbutz movement The Kibbutz Movement (, ''HaTnu'a HaKibbutzit'') is the largest settlement movement for kibbutzim in Israel. It was formed in 1999 by a partial merger of the United Kibbutz Movement and Kibbutz Artzi and is made up of approximately 230 kibbutzim. I ...

, with the

Zionist Organization The World Zionist Organization (; ''HaHistadrut HaTzionit Ha'Olamit''), or WZO, is a non-governmental organization that promotes Zionism. It was founded as the Zionist Organization (ZO; 1897–1960) at the initiative of Theodor Herzl at the F ...

(ZO). At Google Books se
here
The Agricultural Centre played a major role in creating a centralised settlement and agricultural plan. It was in charge of coordinating Jewish agricultural activities by organising settlements into block committees and regional councils, allocating land, etc. After the

1948 war The 1948 Palestine war was fought in the territory of what had been, at the start of the war, British-ruled Mandatory Palestine. During the war, the British withdrew from Palestine, Zionist forces conquered territory and established the Stat ...

, the Agricultural Centre, directly or through its regional councils, distributed land from abandoned Arab farms to the Jewish settlements (individual or in blocks) who were applying for such lease agreements.

Organisation

The 151 members of HaMerkaz HaHakla'i are selected every four years by a conference of 501 members of the Agricultural Workers Union. The organisation is headed by a 21-member secretariat.

History

The Agricultural Workers Union was established in 1919. After the

was established in 1920, the Agricultural Workers Union became one of its central components. This arrangement lasted until 1994, when the two organisations separated.

References

{{Israeli settlement movements Labor Zionism Jewish organizations in Mandatory Palestine Zionist organizations 1920 establishments in Mandatory Palestine 1919 establishments in British-administered Palestine Settlement movements in Israel Agriculture in Israel

Organisation

History

See also

References