The pandemic took its toll on the population of Israel. The country is viewed by commentators as having come out of lockdown too early in the summer and as a result going back into lockdown around the end of the year due to the spike in the number of people catching one of the many covid variants. This naturally challenged the political, societal and business environments as well as the individual Israeli.
How then to recover from the billions of dollars lost from the economy, how to show others the right path out of the terrible crisis of the past 12 months? The answer, in line with the recognised expertise Israel has as a technological and biotech leader, was to embrace and implement a rigorous vaccination programme.
Israel has performed phenomenally well with regard to the number of vaccinations. By the end of March, 70% will have been vaccinated or have recovered from the virus. The Pfizer vaccine has been proven to offer 95% protection, and in an aim to create true herd immunity Israel will shortly start to vaccinate those under 16 years of age.
Those occupiers or investors looking for bargains will need to be swift in their planning. Demand is increasing, viewings growing, and bidding is strong
There has been talk about a post-pandemic bounce back, about the volume of pent-up money both personally and for business. We haven’t been able to spend our money so of course we’ve saved more, and the desire to spend is high. People have been hoping we would see a spike in spending, and growth in investment, but we haven’t had the evidence to prove this. Yes, we’ve seen countries in APAC recover swiftly but their pandemic journey has been very different than the one experienced across EMEA. We now have the first evidence we’ve been looking for.
People have returned, roads are once again congested, the sound of car horns acting as a backdrop for day-to-day life in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. Restaurants are packed, and the only challenge now is securing a table reservation. Retail is performing better then pre-pandemic and people almost feel released from an enforced hibernation, eyes slowly opening, spine stretching out, shaking out the metaphorical stiffness we’ve all felt. Normal activities have quickly been resumed. There is of course some way to go, but as new cases come to light, they prove to be among those not yet vaccinated.
The property markets in Israel took a hit at the beginning of the pandemic when the world was unsure of how long and how bad the crisis would be. Those occupiers or investors looking for bargains will need to be swift in their planning. Demand is increasing, viewings growing, and bidding is strong for attractive assets as the country springs back to life.
One of the reasons for the strong recovery is the implementation of the green passport. While the vaccination is not mandatory, many places of work, restaurants, gyms, bars and shopping centres won’t allow access unless the individual holds a green passport, as proof of being vaccinated. People are free to visit loved ones, in many cases for the first time in a year, travel to the tourist resorts and get ready to welcome summer.
It is to be hoped that the lessons learned in Israel are viewed as a path back to recovery. The next step is to integrate a commonly accepted green passport to allow open travel between Israel and other countries. Indeed, to allow freedom of trav
