Tsofen-Tashbik
Tsofen-Tashbik is an Israeli public benefit organization that promotes Arab participation in the technology sector and helps establish high-tech activity in Arab cities.
Last updated November 4, 2026
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Overview
Tsofen-Tashbik is an Israeli-registered public benefit company and joint Arab-Jewish nonprofit organization focused on expanding Arab participation in Israel’s high-tech economy. Established in Nazareth in 2008, it was founded by hi-tech entrepreneur Smadar Nehab, independent accountant Sami Saadi, and former Amdocs executive Yossi Coten. The organization operates from Nazareth and Kafr Qasim and works across education, professional training, recruitment, employer engagement, local economic development, and public policy. Its central proposition is that Israel’s Arab population represents a substantial source of engineering and technology talent that has historically been underrepresented in the country’s high-tech workforce. Tsofen seeks to address this gap on several levels. It exposes Arab high-school and university students to technology careers, provides applied technological training to students and graduates, offers mentoring and management-development programs, organizes career fairs, and builds professional networks. At the employer level, it works with technology companies to improve recruitment and hiring practices and to create a stronger pipeline of Arab engineers and other technology professionals. A distinctive part of Tsofen’s model is place-based development. Rather than focusing only on placing individuals in companies located in Israel’s established technology centers, the organization has sought to attract companies, branches, and projects to Arab cities, particularly Nazareth. The stated objective is to create local employment, reduce geographic and socioeconomic barriers, and make technology careers more accessible to Arab communities. Tsofen has reported helping facilitate the establishment of more than 50 companies, branches, and projects in Nazareth between 2007 and 2022, including activity associated with Microsoft, Amdocs, Broadcom, Alpha Omega, Galil Software, and Salesforce. The organization also presents its work as a shared-society initiative. Its theory of change holds that day-to-day professional cooperation between Arab and Jewish employees can help reduce stereotypes and create more inclusive economic institutions. Its board is described as evenly divided between Arab and Jewish members, and the organization has maintained Arab-Jewish representation among its leadership and staff. Tsofen also established a Public Council for Promoting Hi-Tech in Arab Society in Israel, bringing together technology, academic, and business figures. Tsofen’s reported programs have included technology-exposure activities for more than 15,000 Arab high-school students, industry workshops for university and college students, applied technology courses completed by more than 2,000 undergraduates and recent graduates, management-development courses, and mentoring for 1,864 candidates. It has also run annual career fairs connecting thousands of students and graduates with recruiting companies. The organization states that its work has contributed to the growth of Arab representation in Israeli hi-tech and that it has placed a significant share of Arab hi-tech employees into the industry. Beyond direct services, Tsofen has pursued institutional and government change. Its five-year plan for hi-tech and innovation in Arab society, developed with the National Arab Local Councils Committee, was incorporated into Israeli Government Resolution 550 and approved and budgeted through the Knesset in 2021. Tsofen participates in Co-Impact, a partnership addressing Arab employment, and has been associated with the Israeli Hope initiative in areas including employment and education. Leadership changed during 2022 and 2023. Sami Saadi, a founding leader and long-serving co-CEO, stepped down at the end of February 2022. Maisam Jaljuli became CEO in July 2022, and from the beginning of 2023 the organization moved to a single-CEO structure. Tsofen remains an active Israeli social-impact organization whose work combines workforce inclusion, regional technology development, and Arab-Jewish cooperation. Public descriptions have also identified risks from delays in government funding from 2024 onward and uncertainty surrounding foreign assistance reviews in 2025.
History
Tsofen-Tashbik was established in Nazareth in 2008 by Smadar Nehab, Sami Saadi, and Yossi Coten as an Arab-Jewish nonprofit organization dedicated to developing high-tech employment and business activity in Israel’s Arab society. Its formal name later became Tsofen-Tashbik – Hi-Tech Development in Arab Society Ltd.; it was previously known as Tsofen High Technology Centers Ltd. The organization was created against a background of very low Arab representation in Israeli hi-tech. At its founding, Arab engineers were reported to account for approximately 0.5 percent of the sector’s employees. From the beginning, Tsofen combined individual workforce development with structural economic-development work. It introduced Arab high-school students to technology careers, organized exposure workshops for students pursuing relevant academic degrees, and delivered applied technology courses for undergraduates and graduates. It also developed mentoring networks, management programs, and career fairs to help candidates navigate recruitment and gain access to employers. Over time, the organization worked with technology companies on more inclusive recruitment and hiring and sought to make Arab talent more visible to the wider industry. A second major strand of its work was the development of local technology ecosystems. Tsofen helped attract or facilitate companies, branches, and projects in Nazareth, where the number of technology engineers grew substantially after the organization’s establishment. The organization has identified companies including Microsoft, Amdocs, Broadcom, Alpha Omega, Galil Software, and Salesforce among the businesses associated with this expansion. Its broader objective has been to bring technology employment closer to Arab communities rather than requiring all workers to relocate to Israel’s established central technology hubs. Tsofen’s reported results include exposure of more than 15,000 Arab high-school students to the technology sector, more than 2,000 students and recent graduates completing applied technology courses, 1,864 candidates receiving mentoring, and the operation of numerous industry workshops and career fairs. It has also reported helping place a substantial share of Arab hi-tech employees in Israel. These figures are organization-reported impact measures and are presented here as such. The organization expanded its policy role through the Public Council for Promoting Hi-Tech in the Arab Society in Israel. The council brought together figures from technology, academia, and business and supported Tsofen’s effort to influence national priorities. Tsofen also became a member of Co-Impact, a partnership focused on Arab employment, and participated in the wider Israeli Hope framework associated with shared society. A significant policy milestone came in 2021, when Tsofen’s five-year plan for hi-tech and innovation in Arab society, developed with the National Arab Local Councils Committee, was incorporated into Government Resolution 550. The plan was approved and budgeted through the Knesset, giving national-policy recognition to the organization’s approach of combining training, employment, regional development, and institutional change. Leadership evolved in 2022. Sami Saadi, who had served as a founding leader and co-CEO, stepped down at the end of February. Maisam Jaljuli became CEO in July of that year. Beginning in 2023, Tsofen adopted a single-CEO model, while its board and staff continued to be described as Arab-Jewish in composition. The board is co-chaired by Fadi Aboud and Alon Bar-Shany, and the public council is co-chaired by Ziyad Hanna and David Perlmutter. Tsofen has received recognition for its social and economic contribution, including a 2015 Knesset Speaker’s Quality of Life prize, the Abraham Fund Initiatives Shared Society Award in 2018, and recognition connected with its policy work in 2021. Its leaders and staff have also received individual listings and awards from Israeli professional and media organizations. In its more recent public descriptions, Tsofen has warned that delays in government funding from 2024 and uncertainty surrounding foreign-assistance reviews in 2025 could threaten program continuity. Its continuing mission is to increase Arab participation in Israel’s high-tech sector, support technology development in Arab cities, and use the workplace as a setting for stronger Arab-Jewish social and economic integration.
- 2023
Moves to a single-CEO structure
[1]The organization changes its executive model while retaining Arab-Jewish representation in leadership and staff.
- 2022
CEO transition
[1]Founding co-CEO Sami Saadi leaves the role, and Maisam Jaljuli becomes CEO later in the year.
- 2021
Policy plan incorporated into Government Resolution 550
[1]Tsofen’s five-year plan for hi-tech and innovation in Arab society becomes part of a national government program.
- 2018
Receives the Shared Society Award
[1]The Abraham Fund Initiatives honors Tsofen for its contribution to shared society.
- 2015
Receives the Knesset Speaker’s Quality of Life prize
[1]Tsofen is recognized for work promoting mutual understanding between Jews and Arabs.
- 2008
Tsofen is founded in Nazareth
[1]Smadar Nehab, Sami Saadi, and Yossi Coten establish an Arab-Jewish nonprofit focused on Arab participation in Israeli high-tech.
Products and positioning
An Arab-Jewish Israeli social-impact organization using technology education, talent placement, employer engagement, regional development, and public policy to increase Arab participation in high-tech and promote a shared society.
Education and workforce development
Applied Technology Training
Practical technology courses for Arab undergraduate students, recent graduates, and other candidates seeking entry into Israel’s high-tech sector. The program is designed to complement academic study with applied skills and employer-oriented preparation.
Professional development
Mentoring and Management Development
Mentoring connects candidates with experienced Arab or Jewish professionals from the technology industry. Separate management-development courses support candidates with limited industry experience and help build a longer-term leadership pipeline.
Recruitment services
Technology Career Fairs
Career fairs introduce Arab students and recent graduates to technology employers recruiting engineers and other professionals. The events help reduce information and networking barriers between candidates and companies.
Career education
Industry Exposure Programs
Exposure activities for high-school and higher-education students explain technology careers, connect learners with industry, and make high-tech employment a more visible option within Arab society.
Regional economic development
High-Tech Center Development
Tsofen works with technology companies and public stakeholders to encourage the establishment of offices, branches, projects, and broader technology activity in Arab cities, especially Nazareth.
Marketing campaigns
- 2021Five-Year Plan for Hi-Tech and Innovation in Arab Society
Israel
A policy initiative developed with the National Arab Local Councils Committee to coordinate public, academic, and business support for technology development in Arab society.
Outcome. The plan was incorporated into Government Resolution 550 and received approval and budgetary support.
- Arab High-Tech Workforce Integration
Israel
A long-running program of training, mentoring, recruitment, and employer engagement intended to increase Arab representation in Israeli technology.
Outcome. Tsofen reports substantial growth in Arab technology employment and thousands of participants across its education and placement activities.
- Nazareth High-Tech Development
Nazareth, Israel
An ecosystem-building effort to bring technology companies, branches, and projects to Nazareth and create local employment.
Outcome. Tsofen reports facilitating more than 50 company, branch, and project openings in Nazareth between 2007 and 2022.
Brand decisions
2023
Moves from co-CEOs to a single CEOStrategyBackground
The change followed the departure of founding co-CEO Sami Saadi and the appointment of Maisam Jaljuli during 2022.
Action taken
Tsofen adopted a single-chief-executive structure while maintaining its Arab-Jewish leadership and organizational identity.
Aftermath
Maisam Jaljuli continued as CEO, with the board remaining jointly represented by Arab and Jewish leaders.
2021
Adopts a national policy-development approachStrategyBackground
Tsofen sought to move beyond direct training and placement by influencing government priorities for Arab employment and innovation.
Action taken
It developed a five-year plan with the National Arab Local Councils Committee and pursued its incorporation into national policy.
Aftermath
The plan was incorporated into Government Resolution 550 and approved and budgeted through the Knesset.
Recent events
- 2025
Foreign-assistance review adds uncertainty for Tsofen[1]
Regulation · Other
The organization has identified uncertainty connected with a review of foreign assistance as an additional risk to its work.
- 2024
Funding delays place Tsofen’s programs at risk[1]
Other
Tsofen has reported that delays in Israeli government funding created risks for its activities supporting Arab participation in hi-tech.
- 2023
Tsofen changes to a single-CEO leadership model[1]
Leadership change
After a leadership transition during 2022, Tsofen moved from a co-CEO structure to a single-CEO model while retaining its Arab-Jewish organizational character.
- 2021
Tsofen incorporates its five-year Arab hi-tech plan into Government Resolution 550[1]
Regulation
Tsofen’s policy plan for hi-tech and innovation in Arab society was incorporated into Israeli Government Resolution 550 and received parliamentary approval and budgetary support.
Sources2 sources
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