ECONOMY MINISTER ARYEH DERI TELLS 150 SENIOR OFFICIALS AND BUSINESSPEOPLE
FROM GERMANY: "COME DO BUSINESS IN ISRAEL, WE ARE AT YOUR SERVICE!"

JERUSALEM, ISRAEL. June 29th, 2015 – Economy Minister Aryeh Deri and
Germany's Brigitte Zypries, Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal
Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, launched the " Germany-Israel
Innovation Day 2015" - the flagship event of the Israeli Ministry of Economy
and the German Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy. The event,
organized in cooperation with the Israel Export Institute, marks 50 years of
Israeli-German relations.

In his comments at the opening session of the innovation day, organized by
the Foreign Trade Administration at the Israeli Ministry of Economy in
collaboration with the Israel Export Institute, Minister Deri congratulated
the participants and noted that the Israeli Ministry of Economy, through its
Foreign Trade Administration, is at the service of entrepreneurs, investors
and businesspeople from both countries and will do all that is necessary to
open doors and strengthen business cooperation between the two countries.

Economy Minister Deri: "The economic relations between Israel and Germany
are significant and stand on a solid foundation of partnership and mutual
responsibility. As Minister of Economy, I have a duty of preserving
strengthening and expanding these relations. The governments of Germany and
Israel operate a wide range of programs for cooperation on research and
development, in an effort to promote industrial and technological
developments by uniting capabilities and knowledge shared between
researchers and entrepreneurs from both countries [...] in a manner that
allows Israeli and German companies to develop new products and services,
jointly and with support from both governments. The Ministry of Economy
under my leadership works hard to promote the economic relations and trade
ties with Germany, through the Office of the Chief Scientist, the
Professional Training Department, the Authority for Industrial Cooperation
and the Foreign Trade Administration, which operates two trade missions in
Germany - in Berlin and in Munich - with their professional staffs
specializing in the German market. The Ministry of Economy's trade missions
in Germany are at your service, cherished businesspeople, and are ready to
assist you in any way necessary."

Brigitte Zypries, Germany's Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal
Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, said: "The Germany-Israel
Innovation Day is a unique opportunity to focus on future-looking
industries. We must work together to nurture and to promote innovative
businesses in both our countries and to maximize our shared advantage."

"Some German companies like SAP, Merck and Deutsche Telecom have already
begun harnessing the strong points of Israeli hi-tech to their advantage.
And still, I wholeheartedly believe there is much more potential for
developing new and different types of cooperation. This is why we want to
use today's Germany-Israel Innovation Day as a springboard to the future. We
intend to focus on cooperation in the fields of information technology and
communications, life sciences, health and cyber-security," said Zypries. She
added: "In the field of startups and entrepreneurship, Germany and Israel
can complete one another and build cooperation on a foundation of advanced
science and first-rate technological capabilities. Startups from Tel Aviv
and Israel in general are welcome to take part in the EXIST program, which
supports projects from early stages of development and offers grants in all
stages from idea to actual launching. In early 2015, the program was
upgraded and today offers beneficial funding conditions with no competition.
For the first time - the program is going international and will offer
Israeli entrepreneurs access to various funding possibilities available in
Germany."

Germany is the largest economy in Europe and its GDP is 20% of the total GDP
of the EU. Additionally, Germany is the world's fourth largest economy in
terms of GDP and the third largest exporter in the world after the US and
China. The German economy is based on wide-scale exports of merchandise and
a social economic system. The leading industries in Germany are engineering
(vehicles, machinery, metals and chemical products), technology and medical
services. As of 2014, the annual growth rate in Germany was 0.1% and
projections for 2015 stand at 1.8%. The five main export targets of Germany
are Holland, China, France, the US and Italy.

During the Germany-Israel Innovation Day 2015, 25 senior spokespeople from
both countries took part in four panels on digital media, cyber-security,
life sciences and smart transportation. Among the participants in the event
were CEOs and senior officials from leading German firms such as Merck,
Deutsche Telecom, Deutsche Bank, SAP, Bosch, BMW and others, alongside
senior officials from the Israeli industry, like Chief Scientist at the
Israeli Ministry of Economy Avi Hasson, hi-tech entrepreneur Yossi Vardi and
hi-tech entrepreneur and former Chief Scientist Orna Berry. The day includes
workshops, dynamic lectures and networking meetings between Israeli and
German companies.

According to the Foreign Trade Administration at the Israeli Ministry of
Economy, Germany is Israel's third largest trade partner. Israel and the EU
enjoy a free trade agreement and Germany and Israel signed an agreement to
prevent double taxation. According to 2014 trade data, Israel imported
German goods and services worth $4.91 billion (a 7% increase over 2013).
Israeli exports to Germany in 2014 stood at $1.71 billion (similar to 2013).

Background - Cooperation with Germany led by the Israeli Ministry of
Economy:

Industrial R&D: Funding for projects of industrial cooperation between
Israel and Germany is one of the pillars of the two countries' trade
relations. The basis for this is an inter-governmental agreement, between
the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and the Office
of the Chief Scientist at the Israeli Ministry of Economy signed in January,
2010. The two ministries agreed to fund projects for joint industrial R&D in
several fields. These projects concentrate on biotechnology, water and
environment technologies, cyber-security and homeland security technologies
and others.

The ZIM-OCS Program: In 2010, The Israeli Ministry of Economy and the German
Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy launched a call to action
for industrial cooperation. The program allows Israeli and German companies
to jointly develop new products and services and to create significant
business ties with support from the governments. The program is implemented
as part of the EUREKA framework, the leading R&D program in Europe. In the
ZIM-OCS program, Israeli and German companies are invited to join forces on
industrial R&D in several leading industries. An approved project gets up to
50% funding for R&D costs which are recognized according to the R&D law and
the rules of the Office of the Chief Scientist. In Germany, the ZIM program
supports small and medium businesses.

Cooperation on professional training: This program has been running for 41
years between the Israeli Ministry of Economy and the German Federal
Ministry of Education and Research and includes workshops and training
visits, bilateral visits by experts, bilateral projects, seminars and
training of experts in colleges and in industry. In recent years, bilateral
projects took place in various fields: ICT, renewable energies and water,
micro technologies and entrepreneurship and innovation.