Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich on Sunday announced the appointment of Dr. Shmuel Abramson as the new chief economist of the Treasury.
Abramson, who since July filled the position of acting chief economist, will replace Shira Greenberg. In the months leading up to the end of her term, Greenberg issued stark warnings about the risk the planned judiciary overhaul poses to economic growth and investments in the country.
The appointment of Abramson, who will be in charge of state revenues, economic research and forecasts, and international relations, is subject to the approval of the appointments committee headed by the Civil Service Commissioner Daniel Hershkowitz, as well as the government.
In his last post as senior deputy to the Finance Ministry’s chief economist, Abramson was responsible for research and policy advancement in areas of the capital market and sectors of the economy, including tech, as well as national security and economics.
More specifically, he was involved in the formulation of policy and research in fields including productivity and innovation in the industrial and service sectors, regulation of digital assets, financial regulation structure, national security aspects in foreign investments, and pension savings.
Abramson, married and the father of four, began his career in the civil service in 2004 and held a variety of positions in the government, including the chief economist’s division, the National Economic Council, and the Accountant General’s division in the Finance Ministry. He also served as a senior researcher at the Kohelet Policy Forum and was a doctoral fellow and assistant policy analyst at the Rand Corp. research institute in the US.
The Kohelet Policy forum is a right-wing think tank many of whose positions are reflected in the government’s ongoing attempts to weaken the judiciary.
Commenting on the appointment, Finance Ministry director general Shlomi Heisler said that Abramson has very diverse experience, both in terms of research and in terms of economic policy formulation.
“The appointment of someone who served in the ministry and grew in the civil service is an expression of confidence in the Finance Ministry, the chief economist division and its dedicated employees,” Heisler remarked.
Abramson has a PhD in policy analysis from the Pardee Rand Graduate School in the US. He holds a master’s degree in financial economics and a bachelor’s degree in philosophy, economics and political science, both from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
The chief economist division is a staff unit at the Finance Ministry responsible for forecasting and monitoring economic variables affecting the economy, formulating tax policy and managing the Treasury’s international relations. The division participates in the building of the state budget. Its publications include the state revenue report, weekly economic forecasts, residential real estate industry reviews and other periodical forecasts.
