The International Fellowship of Christians and Jews (IFCJ), led by Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein, acquiesced to Knesset Internal Committee Head MK David Amsalem's (Likud) request to provide funding allowing children of needy families to attend summer camps in Israel.
11,000 Israeli children from needy families will be provided a subsidy of 500 NIS per child towards summer camps, allowing their parents to continue working during the summer months.
Amsalem requested Rabbi Eckstein's assistance after the planned changes to the summer camp system fell through.
In 2016, regional councils received subsidies to open summer camps, but parents complained they did not see the money. As a result, Interior Minister Aryeh Deri (Shas) promised to reduce the cost of summer camps in 2017. However, the Israeli government decided to delay the proposed changes until 2018.
On Monday, Rabbi Eckstein announced in an Internal Committee meeting that the IFCJ, which is active in 192 regional councils, would provide funding for the summer of 2017 as well.