The Israeli government authorized a five-year plan for improving the absorption of Ethiopian immigrants.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s Cabinet approved an interministerial plan Sunday earmarking some $250 million for the integration of marginalized Ethiopian immigrants by 2013.
“The plan focuses on strengthening the young population (16-35) and in dealing with neighborhoods with large Ethiopian populations,” the Cabinet said in a statement, adding that it will help in areas such as housing, education and employment.
The Ethiopian immigrant community in Israel numbers around 110,000, with about a third of its members born in the Jewish state.
Sixty-eight percent of the community lives below the poverty line, compared to 21 percent among immigrants from the former Soviet Union.
High-profile reports of institutional discrimination against Ethiopian immigrants last year spurred calls for the community to receive greater government backing.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
