“Agamim 10” is Israel’s national program for promoting the country’s water industry and deepening cooperation with multinational bodies. The comprehensive government program - formulated in 2005 after the founding of Waterfronts – Israel’s National Water Alliance - is designed to tap a window of opportunity and enable about 100 start-ups in Israel’s advanced water technologies industry to leverage their advantages and become a major player in the global water market, which is worth $400 billion a year.

Program Implementation The following program will be implemented between 2006-2008 and by encouraging R&D, project development and marketing in this sector will help transform Israel’s innovative water technology solutions into a global leader. The Director General of the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor will appoint a steering committee, which will supervise implementation. In addition to the Ministry of Industry Trade and Labor itself, the committee will include representatives of the Ministry of Finance, Water Commissioner, the Israel Export and International Cooperation Institute, and a member of the public recommended by Waterfronts. 1) Encouraging Academic Research, Industrial R&D & Professional Training A) Katamon (Promoting Water Technology and its Exploitation) This project will allocate $3.3 million a year for the promotion of academic research that has potential for industrial applications. The program will be operated by MATIMOP through the management of MAGNET, Israel Industry Center for R&D through MAGNET, the government program to bring industry and academia together and managed by a committee headed by the Chief Scientist of the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor. B) Water-Technology Dedicated Incubators Within the framework of the government program to privatize technological incubators the Kinarot and Ashkelon Incubators have become dedicated to water technologies. Each “water technology incubator” will nurture five advanced water technology solutions per year. After the location of private buyers, The Office of the Chief Scientist, which currently operates the incubators, will allocate $2.2 million to these incubators during 2007/08. C) Academia Academic programs and courses will be formulated in the water technologies sector. The programs will be devised from the budget allocated for new course development until 2008. D) Research Scholarships and Investment in R&D The Water Commissioner’s budget will grant $2 million worth of scholarships over three years for academic research in the water technologies sector. E) Scholarships for Advanced Degrees The Ministry of Science and Technology and Ministry of Finance will each grant $125,000 a year in scholarships for students undertaking advanced degrees in water technologies. F) Recognition in Buy-Back Agreements Investment in water technologies by overseas companies will be recognized as having 150% of the value of their obligation within the framework of buy-back agreements from Israeli government entities. G) Professional Training The Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor’s Institute for Technological and Scientific Training will examine integrating specialization in water technologies into its programs for professional training and technological manpower development. H) Business Mentoring for Start-Up Companies Within the framework of the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor’s budget for business mentoring $220,000 per year over three years will be allocated for mentoring and accompaniment for water technology start-ups. 2) Targeted Investments A) Consulting Services Entities in the water and sewage infrastructure sector will be permitted to offer professional consultation services to investment funds in the advanced water technologies sector without effecting the subsidies provided for water and sewage supply services. B) Promoting Wastewater Purification Technologies Over the next three years $3.3 million will be allocated for the promotion of wastewater treatment technologies for the reclamation of water for agriculture and industry. The Ministry of Finance will provide the budget. C) Innovative Processes in the Water Infrastructure The Ministry of Interior’s municipal corporations budget will allocate $6.7 million over the next three years for the encouragement of innovative processes in the country’s urban water infrastructure. These processes must be based on Israeli technologies in such areas as water saving, control and distance meter reading, water quality control etc. Municipalities must cover at least 60% of these investments. Within the framework of joint ventures preference will be given to international infrastructure partners who will use potential technologies overseas. D) Mekorot’s Activities Overseas Mekorot will be permitted to operate overseas through a subsidiary. The costs agreement will not apply to the subsidiary and nor will it compromise its subsidies. The subsidiary will only operate abroad and will not invest in equity. 3) Supporting Instruments and Activities A) International Conference in Israel and Conferences Abroad The Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor and the Ministry of Finance and the Israel Export and International Cooperation Institute will allocated $2.5 million for a major conference on water technologies in Israel – Waterfronts 2007, as well as the participation of Israeli water technology companies in leading exhibitions and conferences overseas. B) Water Sector Standards The Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor will allocate $240,000 for the budget of the Standards Institution of Israel to fund Israeli representatives on standards committees in the water technologies sector. C) International Marketing Program The Director-Generals of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor will prepare work plan for promoting the water technologies sector at the highest level including brining three major delegations to Israel for visits during 2007. D) One Stop Shop The Water Commissioner will appoint a representative who will speed up the process of approving new water technologies thus bypassing existing bureaucracies. The Water Commissioner will serve as a one-stop shop for entrepreneurs vis-à-vis all government bodies regarding assistance and speeding up procedures. E) Connecting to Funding Sources The Comptroller General of the Ministry of Finance together with the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor and credit companies will investigate the possibility of government trade insurance and guarantees for long term overseas projects in the water technologies sector as well as insurance for project financing. They will also promote financial protocols with such countries as China, Vietnam and India.