Netanyahu at Davos: Israel is a global center for innovation

"Israel is a global center for innovation, and by that I mean two things, it's a center not only for science and technology, but for the indispensable ingredient of entrepreneurship," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday in an address at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. "It's the man or woman who has an idea -- sometimes a child almost, young men and women -- who have an idea. And that idea takes science and technology and turns it into a workable plan that can actually profit and grow."



In Davos, Netanyahu was seeking to encourage greater investment in the Israeli economy. He held meetings with a number of high-level business and political figures from around the globe, including Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates.

"Israel is often called the Start-up Nation," Netanyahu said. "I call it the Innovation Nation. The future belongs to those who innovate. Those who do not innovate, whether in companies or in countries, will fall behind."

"To have an economy that is run soundly, you have to observe certain principles," Netanyahu said as he presented his economic worldview. "The first one is very simple, but I say that to those of you who are in the audience who run states. The most important rule, number one is: Don't spend ... more than you bring in. You can't afford it. And the second is, of course to maintain a sound macro-economic policy. I say that because we have done it in Israel and we are doing it now. To do that is not easy."

Netanyahu also touched on the issue of cybersecurity.

"The major engine of global economic growth is the internet," Netanyahu said. "The internet has to be protected. You would not leave your bank account open or money on the table or your door open, but effectively unless we have that protection, everybody is exposed. There are no rules of the game and we enter chaos. So Israel leads in the question of cyberprotection -- without which the internet economy cannot move forward.

"We believe that the hundreds of companies that have been established in Israel in the last few years -- hundreds -- in cybersecurity can be your partners. We know that the major cyber firms are already in Israel and they are discovering how true that is, but I think that every country and every company today has a vested interest to have the protection of privacy and cybersecurity.

"These are not always identical. There's often conflict between the two, but it is something that we in Israel think that we can contribute to. I think that you should also know that we are making, as a government a massive investment in this area. We intend to be in the top three -- I think we are in the top three in the question of cybersecurity and cyberprotection."

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