Akko

Akko

Background

Akko is a unique city in the Israeli landscape, home to an incredibly diverse population of different ethnic, religious, cultural, and age groups. Akko is 60.4% Jewish and 31.8% Arab, with about 20% of residents over the age of 60.

The Jewish population is largely secular, but the religious population is growing and includes Haredim, Chardalim, and Dati Leumi’im.

The Work Process

During the first phase of the City for All process in Akko (2017-2018), our multi-sectoral steering committee accomplished the following:

  • Meetings with all of the senior staff at the Akko municipality, including the City CEO, City treasurer, City Legal Council, Head of the Employment Services, Head of Welfare Services department, and others.
  • A large public consultation held in the Akko city hall in May 2018 with over 120 participants including men and women, city senior staff, city employees, and elected council members. Through a methodology developed by Itach- Ma’aki, the participants formed a Gender Equality Convention and Action Plan for the city of Akko.
  • During the months of June to November 2018 the steering committee and the Itach- Ma’aki staff wrote Akko’s vision and action plan. In December, the plan was reviewed and signed by the mayor and the city council.

 

Impact

The second phase of City for All in Akko was the implementation of the Action Plan:

  • After the adoption of the City for All Akko Action Plan, the Mayor of Akko appointed Mrs. Sari Goldshtein– who also holds the gender equality portfolio – as deputy mayor to the city council.
  • In addition, various Akko municipal departments began an individual analysis of their data by gender, age, national origin, and more.
  • In March 2019, a diverse Women’s Council was established in Akko – the first of any council in Israel — comprising 40 women from around the city. This Women’s Council is active on various projects with the support of the Mayor and city council, and is made up of Arab and Jewish women in equal proportions to the population.
  • In May 2019, the Women’s Council hosted a Kosher Iftar to promote cross-cultural understanding and shared society among women.