The Council was enacted in a Government Resolution of September 2006, and its role includes, inter alia:

1. Formulating initiatives for policy steps intended to encourage growth in the economy, while narrowing gaps.
2. Preparing opinions regarding state budget proposals before its submission to the Government, as well as on specific budgetary issues.
3. Preparing professional opinions regarding propositions on decisions on the agenda of the Government and government committees in economic fields.

The head of the Council is Prof. Manuel Trajtenberg, from the Ethan Bergles School for Economics at Tel Aviv University.  Prof. Trajtenberg holds a doctorate from Harvard University in Boston, is a research fellow at NBER (National Bureau of Economic Research) in Boston and in the CEPR (Center for Economic Policy Research) in London, and also serves as an adviser to the World Bank in the fields of policy innovation and growth.  In addition, Prof. Trajtenberg served as a guest professor at Stanford and Harvard Universities.

In the framework of the Council, a division for research and information operates, which includes a professional and multi-disciplinary team of economists with senior degrees, at the head of which is the Vice Head of the Council.  In addition, the Prime Minister will, in future, assign an advisory committee to the Council, which will consist of senior economists with experience in the public sector, the private sector and in academia.

The Council may be reached by telephone at: 02-670-5636; by fax: 02-670-5677; or by e-mail: nec@it.pmo.gov.il.