David Horowitz Dead at 80

Funeral services were held today for David Horowitz, one of Israel’s leading economists, who died in Jerusalem Friday. He was 80 years old. Horowitz was the first Governor of the Bank of Israel, and for years one of the top economic advisors to the government.

Horowitz was associated with the economics of the Jewish “yishuv” in Palestine much before there was the Bank of Israel or even the State of Israel. He arrived in Palestine at the end of World War I as a halutz. While emerging as one of Israel’s leading economists, he also developed a world status as a economist and humanitarian. He won world fame when he developed the “Horowitz Plan” for international aid to underdeveloped countries.

Horowitz was born in Drohobycz, eastern Galicia, Feb. 15, 1899 and was educated in Lwow. Following the 1919 programs on the Lwow Jews, Horowitz immigrated to Palestine with Hashomer Hotzair. In 1932 Horowitz was appointed financial advisor to the American Committee of Palestine, a position which placed him fairly and squarely at the nerve center of all the economic problems of the yishuv.

Between 1935 and 1948 he served as director of the economic department of the Jewish Agency, the yishuv’s Ministry of Finance. It was very much due to him that following World War 11 the yishuv emerged with a modern economy which made it ready to face the challenges of independence. With the establishment of the State on May 14, 1948, Horowitz became the first Director General of the Finance Ministry.

From 1952 to 1954 Horowitz worked to establish the Bank of Israel, becoming its first Governor in 1954. He served in this post until 1971. Until recently he was the chairman of the bank’s advisory board.