Israel has solutions for us, says PA delegation

Patriotic Alliance [PA] Members of Parliament travelled to Israel at the end of May to find out about the country despite the backlash its members faced for visiting Israel as part of a multiparty fact-finding mission in April.

The delegation, made up of 22 PA members, travelled to the country with the South African Friends of Israel (SAFI) to understand how Israel thrives despite being at war. They also explored various aspects of water security, agricultural sustainability, and technological innovation, and where Israel has implemented significant projects in this regard throughout Africa.

“We went to see what we can learn from Israel that we can implement at home,” Theo Doyle, a Johannesburg city councillor for the PA told the SA Jewish Report.

In Israel, they met various Israeli entities like IsraAID and Innovation Africa, that were set up exclusively to assist countries in need, whether to address local diseases, access to water, or disaster relief. Doyle lamented the fact that due to the South African government’s hostile relationship with Israel, these entities find it difficult to operate in this country.

“We went to Israel intending to expose this delegation to Israeli technology and innovation,” said Bafana Modise, the spokesperson for SAFI, “We hope that through the innovation that we are learning about in Israel, we are also able to uplift our people out of poverty.”

The delegation’s focus was on gaining knowledge and solutions to South Africa’s agricultural and technological problems.

Israeli-designed water innovation like drip irrigation accounts for 50% of the world’s low pressure irrigation systems, while Israel reclaims 86% of its wastewater for agricultural needs, the highest percentage of this in the world.

Israel is a world leader in desalination, managing to source 85% of its drinking water from its infrastructure projects. “We were able to see first-hand how a country like Israel was able to solve its water issues, and could fundamentally assist a water-scarce country like South Africa with its various challenges,” said Doyle.

“We went to one of the 350 desalination plants that Israel has helped create in nearly 40 countries. It was a $700 million plant that is privately funded,” said Doyle. “We gained a lot of knowledge and insight into how we can address challenges in South Africa.”

Doyle says if relations between the South African government and Israel were to improve, the two countries could work on solutions to both countries’ problems.

“We visited farms as well because Israel is also at the forefront of agriculture. We can also learn from this, but once again, our government doesn’t have relations with Israel. I hope and pray that relations will be restored soon.”

One of the companies they visited in the technological arena was Checkpoint, which monitors cybersecurity, not only in Israel but around the world.

Aside from agriculture and technology, Doyle said he learnt a lot about governance.

“Even though Israel is at war, the country is functioning smoothly. There’s no problem with regards to running the country. It’s a resilient nation,” he said.

Doyle said it was his first trip to Israel, as well as the first time he had travelled internationally. The group was warmly received, he said.

“It’s a hospitable country for me,” he said. “People engaged with us. It was an experience that I will never forget.”

“Even though we’ve received all that vital information from Israel, we’re unable to implement it because you must have a certain percentage of power in the government to make it happen.”