Arab Women in the Start-Up Nation: Breaking Barriers and Boo...
Arab Women in the Start-Up Nation: Breaking Barriers and Boosting Growth | Jan 14-17
Jan 14 - 16, 2019 6:30pm - 7:00pm
What does it take for an Arab woman to be part of the start-up nation? What is the business case of workforce diversity in high-tech? Join us to hear from Ifat Baron, Founder of ItWorks, and Alaa Halumi, an alumnus of itworks and Arab software engineer, about efforts to integrate Arabs into Israel’s most important industry and the personal journey of an Arab woman who broke through the barriers and is now a role model to others.
Israel is well-known as a high-tech powerhouse, but for more than a decade, industry growth has been outpacing the domestic supply of skilled professionals creating a labor shortage that is pushing the industry off-shore. At the same time, Israel’s Arab citizens, who make up nearly 20% of the population, are the focus of national efforts to bring them into Israel’s advanced professions. Arab women, especially, are the most underrepresented in Israel’s workforce and are seen as key to closing economic gaps for Arab society.
Event Details:
- Tuesday, January 15 Breakfast - Embassy of Israel, Washington, DC READ MORE AND REGISTER HERE
- Wednesday, January 16 at 7pm - Jewish Federation of Delaware Siegel JCC Auditorium READ MORE AND REGISTER HERE
About the Speakers
Ifat Baron
Ifat Baron is an innovator and social entrepreneur dedicated to promoting the occupational and economic development of disenfranchised populations. In 2006, Ifat founded itworks, a non-profit dedicated to promoting employment diversity in Israel’s booming hi-tech sector.
Alaa Halumi
Alaa Halumi, a software engineer, is committed to encouraging young Arab women in Israel to enter the country’s flourishing high-tech sector. A native of Nazareth, Alaa was the only Arab woman in her Mathematics and Arts class at Haifa University where she earned her B.S. She is currently finishing her Master’s Degree in Software Engineering at Shenkar College. Alaa is currently a Product Owner at BuilderEdge, a start-up that provides a platform for construction project management.
