The Israeli and Chinese governments agreed in principle on Jan. 4 to import up to 20,000 construction workers to Israel to ease a huge shortage there. The pact, initialed in Beijing, follows years of negotiations and is set to be finalized by the end of February.
Israeli Housing Minister Yoav Galant said the severe worker shortage in recent years has led to a slowdown in constructino of much-needed housing. He predicted the large-scale entry of Chinese construction workers will expedite work and reduce costs to be passed on the public.