Civil Society Organizations Demand Major Boost in Public Spending Ahead of Vote
Ahead of the elections, 23 civil society organizations urged party leaders to commit to increasing public civilian spending to bridge a massive funding gap with OECD nations.
A week before the elections, 23 civil society organizations appealed to party leaders on Tuesday, demanding a commitment to a gradual, multi-year increase in investment for public services. This call comes amid a persistent gap in public civilian spending between Israel and developed OECD countries.
The initiative was led by the Social Justice Centers and the Arlozorov Forum research institute, with signatures from organizations including Latet, Na'amat, Pitchon Lev, the Union of Social Workers, and the Adva Center. As highlighted in the 2025 Bank of Israel report, Israel's civilian spending remains significantly lower than the OECD average.
According to the organizations' calculations, the annual gap reaches approximately 205 billion shekels. Even after adjusting for Israel's high defense expenditures, a deficit of about 89 billion shekels remains. The letter notes that these shortfalls include roughly 50 billion shekels in welfare and social security, 32 billion in education, and 13 billion in health.
Civil society groups emphasized that the events of October 7 and the ongoing war demonstrated the heavy price of public systems ill-equipped for emergencies. They urged political parties to publicly commit to narrowing these disparities and to anchor the plan in the next government's baseline guidelines.
