1 Sivan 5772
22 May 2012

For Immediate Release:
Positive Trends as Jerusalem Marks 45 Years Since Reunification
Jerusalem Municipality

On Sunday, May 20th 2012, Jerusalem celebrated both the anniversary of the
1967 reunification of the holy city, as well as a series of encouraging
trends in the growth and quality of life in Jerusalem.

For the first time in 15 years, the population of students in Jerusalem's
secular schooling system is increasing. This major demographic shift
highlights an improvement in the attractiveness of the city for young
secular families.

The city has seen a 4% increase in qualification for matriculation among
high school students in the national and national-religious educational
systems.

Businesses in the center of the city, and along the route of the Jerusalem
light rail, have seen an increase in revenue for the first time in many
years.

According to recent polling, Jerusalem residents are satisfied with their
lives and more optimistic about their future than residents of other cities
around the country.
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Jerusalem Mayor, Nir Barkat:

All residents of Jerusalem can feel and are enjoying, the dramatic changes
taking place in the city. They support the trends, and deserve much of the
credit for the great renaissance the city is experiencing. After 15 years of
decline, there is an increase in the secular educational systems and a
dramatic rise in qualification for matriculation. The city is breaking
records in the number of tourists and our cultural and sporting events are
attracting thousands of participants from Israel and abroad.

As a result of focused efforts and major investments by the Jerusalem
Municipality, the city has seen a rapid scaling in the number of
international businesses now investing and setting up offices in the city.

Jerusalem is reclaiming its place as the cultural capital of Israel, while
simultaneously attracting more young families and gaining an international
reputation for accessibility and excellence.

Jerusalem is committed to continuing to invest in education, culture,
economy, and the overall ambiance of the city, in order to make it worthy of
its name, its history, and its role as the capital of the State of Israel.

For additional information, contact: Barak Cohen, Spokesman for Jerusalem
Municipality – Barak@Jerusalem.muni.il, +972-2-629-7720

Educational System Scaling in Jerusalem:

After a decade and a half of consecutive decline (12%), there is has been an
increase this year in the number of students in the national education
system in Jerusalem.
In the school year 5772 there are 11,133 students in elementary national
education institutions as opposed to 11,024 students in 5771.

Elementary religious education has also seen an increase in students after
years of decline in their numbers. 11,003 students attend the religious
national education institutions as opposed to 10,872 students in 5771.

After years in which no major increase in the number of students eligible to
receive matriculation certificate was recorded, matriculation eligibility
percentage in the national education sector has increased by 4% to 64.03% as
opposed to 59.42% in 5769. Furthermore, an increase of 4% was recorded in
the religious-national education sector in the school year 5770 to 68.09% as
opposed to 64.27% in 5769. An increase in eligibility for the matriculation
certificate emerged following reforms initiated by the Municipality, the
Knesset, and the institution of new educational programs.

The percentage of students eligible to receive the matriculation
certificate, which met the university threshold requirements, was 87% in
Jerusalem in comparison to 85% in the nationwide figures.

The Municipality launched this year the “Barkat Model” developed by the
mayor as an administrative tool aimed for school principals. The model
includes 30 indicators that examine not only grades, as was the case with
previous methods, but also includes ethical and social indicators such as
volunteering in the community, recruitment to the IDF, parental
satisfaction, social environment, violence level and more. The model has
been highly commended by principals, teachers and parents’ committees and is
currently being expanded to other cities in the country.

The Young Choose Jerusalem

52% of the residents who moved to Jerusalem in 2010 are between the ages
24-30, and only 47% of the residents leaving Jerusalem are between the ages
24-30.

Satisfaction:

Jerusalem city residents are optimistic about their life: 89% of the city’s
residents are satisfied with their life as opposed to 87% in Israel, and 86%
in Tel Aviv.
City residents are optimistic about their future: 70% of residents feel that
their lives in the future will improve as opposed to 62% in Tel Aviv and 53%
in Haifa.

59% of the city’s residents are satisfied with their financial situation.

56% are satisfied with their level of income.

83% of the city’s residents are satisfied with their workplace.

Tourism:

In 2011 the number of night stays in Jerusalem hotels amounted to 3,854,500
nights, 18% of all night stays in Israel.

80% of the tourists who visited in Israel in 2011 visited Jerusalem.

The most visited sites were the Wailing Wall (visited by 60% of all
tourists), the Jewish Quarter in Jerusalem (55%), the Via Dolorosa in
Jerusalem (48%) and the Mount of Olives (46%).

Jerusalem was selected as one of the top 25 most sought after destinations
in 2011 in a survey held by the prestigious and popular website
“Tripadvisor”; Jerusalem reached the position of number 13 out of 337
tourist destinations worldwide.

Hotel revenues from tourism in 2011 amounted to NIS 1,567,497 billion.

A massive summer campaign by the name “Spend two days in Jerusalem” resulted
in an increase of 30% in the number of Israeli visitors in the city during
the summer.

So far, in 2012 an increase of 44% has been recorded in internal tourism.

The Jerusalem Municipality created a special program to facilitate and
promote hotel construction, including close supervision by developers,
removal of bureaucratic obstacles, distribution of grants, and decreasing
municipal taxes for the purpose of encouraging developers to build
additional hotel rooms in Jerusalem.

Of the new hotels that are already designed, two belong to luxury chains:
the Waldorf Astoria, constructed with an investment of 150 million dollars
and containing 230 rooms, and a Four Seasons hotel containing 200 rooms.

Culture and sports:

In the last three years there has been a cultural and sports revolution in
Jerusalem. Culture budgets were doubled and the number of cultural events
and festivals in the city has been tripled. Jerusalem has returned to center
stage, attracting the major sports, cultural events and major international
events in the country. Jerusalem has become the nationwide leader with the
new sports and cultural complexes set up by the Municipality which are
intended to host numerous and diverse events. These shows will be delivered
by internationally acclaimed performers, and include the Maccabiah and a
variety of other leading film, theatre and art schools in the country.

The second international Jerusalem Marathon was held this year, attended by
15,000 runners including 1,500 runners from 50 different countries
worldwide. The marathon received positive feedback in Israel and worldwide
and significantly contributed to the city’s economy and its branding
worldwide.

A new sports arena, funded in part by the Israel Lottery, is under advance
construction stages and will become part of the national sports complex
which also included the expanded Teddy Stadium (31,000 seats), an Olympic
swimming center, an upgraded tennis center, a sports hotel, a light rail
station and more.

In addition, the Jerusalem Municipality and the Jerusalem Development
Authority set up bicycle routes, seating corners, lawns and sports and
recreation facilities along HaMesila Park, from the Khan rail station and up
to the Malcha rail station, along the old rail route.

City Center:

The city center occupies its natural place as Jerusalem’s principal place of
business. According to R.I.S. report: for the first time in years businesses
in the city center and along the light rail route have increased their
income. One of the main goals set by Mayor Nir Barkat in the beginning of
his tenure was intense physical and economic development in the city center
for the purpose of attracting visitors and maximizing the potential inherent
in the Jerusalem Light Rail. The Municipality has made intense efforts to
upgrade the Jerusalem city center as the shopping, culture, recreation and
leisure center for both the city’s residents and visitors. These efforts
include, among other things: A higher level of maintenance, supervision and
cleanliness, handling sanitary and safety challenges, business promotion and
development, production of cultural events and more.

Additional figures:

Jerusalem, the nation’s capital, is the largest city in Israel, both in
terms of its geographis area, 125.2 thousand dunam, and in terms of
residents living in the city. In 1948 Jerusalem’s population amounted to
82,900 people. In 2011 Jerusalem’s population crossed 800,000 as 801,000
residents live in the city, of which 407,000 are Jews (62%), 281,000 Moslems
(35%), 14,000 Christians (2%) and 9000 undenominational (1%).

The five cities to which city residents emigrate from Jerusalem are: 10.3%
to Beit Shemesh, 8.4% to Tel Aviv, 5% to Beitar Illit, Givat Ze'ev 4.7% and
4.2% to Modiin Illit.
• The word “Jerusalem” is referenced in Google 40,100,000 times.
• The word “Jerusalem” appears in Google 137,000,000 times.
• The average winter day temperature in Jerusalem is 12 degrees and 29
degrees in the summer.
• Before its unification Jerusalem’s municipal area was 38.1 square
kilometers.
• The overall length of Jerusalem roads is 1,253km.
• The longest street in the city in Menachem Begin Avenue, 15.7km in
length.
• The shortest street is A-Tabuna stairs, 7.60m in length followed by
Matityahu Street, 9.55m in length.
• There are 173,055 walking routes in Jerusalem.
• There are 28km of highways in Jerusalem.
• Jerusalem is located in the Judean Mountains, therefore there are
34.9km of stairs, for the residents’ convenience.
• There are 2000 archaeological sites in Jerusalem.
• 15,000 runners attended the Jerusalem Marathon with runners from more
than 50 countries worldwide.

This summer the city will host numerous events, including:
- The Light Festival.
- The International Film Festival.
- The Front Stage Jerusalem Street Party.
- Jerusalem Season of Culture.
- The Wine Festival at The Israel Museum.
- The International Festival of Puppet Theater.
- Hutzot HaYotzer Festival.
And numerous other events.
Figures were taken from the Central Bureau of Statistics, Jerusalem
Institute for Israel Studies, Jerusalem Municipality divisions, Tourism
Bureau, Hotels Association and the Jerusalem Development Authority.

For additional details:
Barak Cohen, Spokesman, Jerusalem Municipality. Barak@jerusalem.muni.il -
02-6297744.