ARE KIBBUTZIM BACK? Could be.

After years of crisis, reduced productivity and departing members, kibbutzim have experienced a noticeable turnaround. If in 1997 the overall kibbutz product was at a level of NIS 20 billion, in 2006 the figure stands at about NIS 27 billion. In this same nine-year period, the kibbutzim have gone from a collective debt of NIS 700 million to a NIS 1.2 billion profit, accounting for 12% of all Israeli exports.

When I was a kid, kibbutzim was more than about making money--actually money was the last thing I associated with kibbutzim. Kibbutzim was all about an Israeli way of life and attitude.
Bringing back financially viable kibbutzim is a lot easier than bringing back the spirit that went along with them.

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