New models in trade, innovation and philanthropy were the main topics in a panel discussion at the Jerusalem Post London Conference last Thursday.
Participants in the panel included Daniel Korski, CEO and founder of Public; Daniel Kessler, chairman of UK-Israel Business; Dr. Merav Galili, founding CEO of the Menomadin Foundation; and Yaniv Amir, president of Essence USA. JPost.com managing editor Tamir Beeri moderated the panel discussion.
Regarding UK-Israel trade, Kessler said the UK, as Israel’s third-largest trading partner, views Israel, with its vaunted research and development skills, as a partner with enormous potential.
For more panels and interviews from The Jerusalem Post London Conference, click here >>
Galili said the Menomadin Foundation was founded in 2019 to leverage the vast experience of its president, Haim Taib, who has developed impact-oriented, innovative models in Africa that have helped people and yielded solid financial returns.
Philanthropy alone cannot solve the world’s problems, she said. “We have to unlock new sources of capital, and that will come from private investors,” she added. “But we know that private investors are reluctant to pursue risk.”
The Menomadin Foundation has developed an innovative risk-mitigation paradigm in its use of philanthropic funds as cushions for private capital, Galili said. In that way, it first uses philanthropic funds for business development and risk mitigation to develop the concept and only then asks private capital to join in the venture, she said.
Amir, president of the American branch of Essence, the international technology company that develops cloud-based, end-to-end security and healthcare solutions in Israel, said COVID had led to major changes in healthcare and accelerated the usage of medical visits via videoconferencing, which will likely remain after the pandemic.
A recent pilot project conducted with Clalit Health Services had demonstrated the success of an Essence program conducted in Israel that utilizes a remote patient-monitoring solution that enables remote supervision of elderly and chronic patients at home, thus reducing hospitalization rates, he said.
“There are not enough doctors, not enough medical staff and not enough beds in hospitals,” Amir said. “We need a solution, and the only way is technology. We believe that remote patient monitoring is the way forward, and we definitely see that trajectory in the future.”