OTTAWA — Representatives of the Canadian and Israeli governments declared last week that both their countries are open to collaborative business ventures in science and technology.

They vowed to “deliver on their commitments made during the Canada- Israel Technology Innovation Summits held in 2010 and 2011. Canadian and Israeli companies as well as their collaborators may now submit their proposals for research and development projects in areas of mutual priorities which include water, renewable energy, and brain-related research,” the National Resource Council of Canada (NRC) said last week.

Avi Hasson, chief scientist at Israel’s Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor, and NRC president John McDougall, met July 24 in Ottawa.

“We look forward to working together on more collaborative projects that will benefit our economy and will strengthen our industry,” McDougall said. “Canada and Israel share common strength in industry and technology fields, and we are confident that this call for proposals will result in tangible benefits for both countries.”

Hasson said the agreement will help both countries address “pressing challenges” in today’s world.

“We are confident that this new co-operation is an important addition to the existing support mechanisms and will intensify and deepen the methods of technology collaboration between Canada and Israel and create new opportunities for our industries,” he said.

The collaboration between the countries is being implemented jointly through the NRC and MATIMOP – the Israeli Industry Centre for R&D.

Proposals are being considered through EUREKA, which the NRC describes as a “European-based network raising productivity and competitiveness of business through technology.”

 Eligible projects will be funded by both Canada and Israel.