Israel Export and International Cooperation Institute

The Israel Export and International Cooperation Institute has a mixed public-private institutional character. The U.S. Department of State describes it as a government agency operating independently under the Ministry of Economy and Industry, while the institute's 2026 catalogue calls it a nonprofit organization that serves as the government's executive arm for promoting exports and international trade in partnership with the Ministry's Foreign Trade Administration.[2][3] A 2004 publication states that it was established by the government, the Manufacturers Association, and the trade unit of the commercial bureau.[5]

An industry-support account described the institute's funding as 60 percent from the government and 40 percent from established Israeli exporting companies.[6] A 2016 government catalogue said it was supported by more than 2,600 member firms, private-sector bodies, and the Israeli government.[1] An earlier ministry overview described the institute as charging symbolic fees for information and instruction provided to exporters and manufacturers seeking to enter foreign markets.[7]

The National Library of Israel's directory lists an institutional library under the acronym IEI, with the library code IL-IEI, the ISO-ILL code IL:IEI, and an address at 29 Hamered Street, P.O. Box 50084, Tel Aviv 68125.[4] A 1971 account placed the IEI within a broader group of government-established and financed export-promotion agencies that also included the Israel Company for Fairs and Exhibitions, the Institute of Product Packaging and Design, Market Survey Services, the Israel Standards Institute, and the Productivity Institute.[8]

The institute was founded in 1958, when Israel's export economy remained comparatively small.[1][9] Figures released by the IEI in 2011 illustrated the subsequent growth: total Israeli exports rose from approximately $6 million in 1948 to $80.5 billion in 2010.[9] Diamond exports grew from $2.8 million to $8.9 billion over that period, while high-tech goods and services—including research and development, electronics, software, computerized systems, communications, and medical equipment—reached approximately $28.5 billion in 2010, representing 35 percent of total exports.[9]

The institute also tracked a major geographic reorientation of Israeli trade. Europe accounted for roughly 70 percent of Israeli goods exports in the early 1950s and 1960s but had fallen to 32 percent by the time of the 2011 report, while Asia's share climbed from approximately 1 percent in the 1950s to 24 percent.[9] The IEI projected a 7 percent increase in combined goods and services exports in 2011, to approximately $86 billion.[9]

The Israel Export and Trade Journal was an English-language periodical published in Tel Aviv from 1949 to 1981. Volumes 1–9, covering 1949 to 1957, appeared under the title Israel Export Journal, and the publication continued under that title after 1981.[10] The IEI also published specialized trade directories, including Israel's Biotechnology, a 1994 catalogue containing information on approximately 40 exporting companies.[6] In association with Israel's Ministry of Defense procurement agency SIBAT, the institute was connected with the Israel Homeland Defense Directory, an irregular electronic publication cataloged from the 2011/12 volume.[11]

The IEI's principal services for Israeli companies include strategic market access, business-development guidance, and structured matchmaking with overseas buyers, investors, and partners.[3] For international stakeholders, the institute presents itself as an organized entry point into Israel's innovation ecosystem. Its materials state that Israel has more than 9,000 high-tech companies working in fields such as smart-home technology, digital health, automotive technology, video and gaming, wearables, the Internet of Things, and artificial intelligence.[3]

The institute organizes Israeli participation in exhibitions abroad and sponsors other overseas export-promotion activities.[7] Its Book and Printing Center promotes Israeli publishing and printing internationally, including by organizing Israel's national stand at the Frankfurt Book Fair and other international book-trade events.[12] The institute's Economic Unit produces country- and region-specific export analyses that have been cited in policy research evaluating commercial opportunities and trends.[13][14]

In the clothing sector, IEI research found that more than 90 percent of Israeli apparel exports were sold through the private-label method, meaning the products reached consumers under another company's brand rather than an Israeli one.[15] The institute has also promoted Israeli industries connected with environmental chemistry and technology.[5]

A notable example of the IEI's matchmaking role came in 2016, when the institute and Ministry of Economy and Industry trade missions in New York and San Francisco organized a delegation of 13 Israeli sports and advertising technology companies.[16] The companies presented athlete-performance sensors, real-time video and replay analysis, video-game applications, and fan-brand communication platforms. Delegates held hundreds of advance-scheduled meetings with representatives of the NBA, NFL, NHL, and MLB, as well as sports teams, media companies, and investors.[16]

Following the Abraham Accords, the institute signed an agreement with the Dubai World Trade Centre in October 2020 to facilitate Israeli participation in large-scale Gulf exhibitions and international conferences, exchange business delegations, and support bilateral opportunities between Israel and the United Arab Emirates.[17] The agreement marked the institute's first formal assumption of responsibility for Israeli participation in international exhibitions in the Gulf States.[17] The estimated annual export potential to the UAE was placed at $500 million across technology, agriculture, food technology, cybersecurity, and medical sectors, and the accord was presented as a first step toward a broader Israel-UAE trade agreement.[17]

During wartime conditions described in a July 2025 report, the institute continued operating despite reserve-duty call-ups, rocket alerts, disrupted supply chains, and a shortage of Palestinian labor.[18] Emergency war rooms connected companies with alternative logistics routes, while virtual matchmaking events generated more than 5,000 one-on-one meetings between Israeli companies and overseas buyers.[18]

The IEI's Economic Unit supplies export intelligence used in Israeli policy research. Examples include a 2019 presentation on trends in exports to Africa, a preliminary summary of developments and trends in Israeli exports for 2019, and an annual report for 2016 with a forecast for 2017.[13]

For China, the Economic Unit supplied a 2015–2018 sectoral breakdown of Israeli exports. Electronics accounted for 51 percent of the total, followed by chemicals and oil distillates at 8 percent, measuring and control devices at 8 percent, medical and surgical devices at 7 percent, mineral mining and extraction at 7 percent, machinery and equipment at 5 percent, base metals and metal products at 3 percent, telecommunications at 2 percent, and food and drinks and rubber and plastic products at 1 percent each.[14] Total Israel-China trade reached $15.67 billion in 2018, including approximately $10.97 billion in Israeli imports from China and $4.7 billion in Israeli exports to China.[14]

For Africa, IEI data showed Israeli exports to African states totaling $725 million in 2018 and $600 million in 2019.[13] For Morocco, the institute estimated annual export potential at $250 million—less than 1 percent of Israel's total exports of $143 billion in 2021.[19] In its 2016 annual report, the institute predicted that Israeli exports to Europe would recover in 2017, citing expected growth in the European economies that represented Israel's principal export destinations.[20] Pharmaceuticals and chemicals then accounted for 39.2 percent of exports to leading European markets, machinery and transport equipment for 21.3 percent, and computers, electronic, electro-optic, and other products for 15 percent.[20] The institute separately characterized India as possessing enormous economic potential and described it as a first-rate strategic objective for Israeli exports.[14]