Location of entrepreneurship assistance centres in Israel

The establishment of entrepreneurship assistance centres in Israel in the 1 990s, triggered by the need to absorb mass-immigration, serves as an exampl e for the geographic implications of the break from top-down approaches to regional development towards a pluralist model that involves a variety of n ational networks and local partnerships. A balance between cost effectivene ss and social needs was achieved through the establishment of assistance ce ntres by several organisations, each committed to a different set of princi ples. Demand-driven initiatives, led by broad coalitions, were common in co re regions, while stronger parochial political culture and 'social needs' o rientation of development initiatives reduced the prospects for formation o f broad growth coalitions in the periphery. Unique core-periphery variation s among immigrants increased the attractiveness of initiatives in the perip hery. However, as the system matures, pre-immigration core-periphery variat ions in entrepreneurial potential can be expected to be more influential.