Israel’s six key economic clusters seek partnerships with India

Israeli Minister of Economy Nir Barkat has expressed profound gratitude to India for its unwavering support, highlighting Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s prompt solidarity following the October 7 terror attacks.

Speaking to ET on a visit to India to push investment and technology partnership Barkat elaborated on Israel’s innovative economic model, which identifies six key clusters driving exports. These include advanced manufacturing, life sciences, and high-tech and desert-tech sectors.

The approach involves aligning infrastructure to these clusters, creating specialized facilities like labs that cater to multiple startups. For instance, shared laboratories for agri-tech companies not only reduce costs but also foster a collaborative ecosystem, Barkat noted.


By leveraging public-private partnerships, Israel maximizes efficiency and scales innovations effectively, offering a replicable framework for India-Israel collaboration, the Minister pointed out. “We have a huge number of startups and India has the market,” Barkat pointed out.

Barkat emphasized the potential for deeper India-Israel ties through strategic pilot projects and infrastructure investments tailored to sector-specific needs. He pointed out that Israel’s small yet innovation-rich economy complements India’s vast scale in market size and talent.

Collaborative pilots, particularly in areas like artificial intelligence and quantum technologies, could help create scalable solutions for both nations. By nurturing these collaborations, Israel and India can position themselves as global leaders in innovation while fostering stronger government-to-government and people-to-people relationships.

Barkat among others met Foreign Minister S Jaishankar, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology; Earth Sciences, Minister of State PMO, Department of Atomic Energy, Department of Space, Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Dr. Jitendra Singh;
In his meetings Barket discussed collaboration in Start Ups including in Space and Quantum Technology. They also discussed collaborative innovation initiatives in agriculture and health sectors.