Israel’s northern city of Haifa demonstrates how strategic investment in education, healthcare and transportation can expand economic opportunities and support inclusive development, according to the Senior Director of Global Resource Development in Israel, Ambassador Dr. Reda Mansour, who says the model offers lessons for countries such as Ghana seeking to strengthen human capital and improve living standards.
Mansour, speaking during an engagement with The High Street Journal’s Nii Marmah Boye in Israel, said countries that achieve sustained development typically build systems that ensure citizens have access to three critical public services such as quality education, accessible healthcare and reliable transportation.
He said these services form the foundation for creating opportunities, improving productivity and enabling people from different social and economic backgrounds to participate in national development. According to him, education remains the “most important tool for social change,” explaining that Haifa’s investment in accessible public education has helped transform the city, despite it being outside Israel’s major economic centres of Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.
Haifa, he noted, has developed into a major education hub with institutions such as the University of Haifa and the Technion, Israel’s leading technological university, providing residents with access to “high-level education” and opportunities to improve their economic prospects.
Ghana’s development agenda highlights the importance of expanding quality education beyond major urban centres to ensure that young people across regions can access the skills required for economic growth, innovation and entrepreneurship.
Beyond education, Mansour pointed to healthcare as another pillar of development, noting that Israel’s universal healthcare structure ensures citizens receive medical services regardless of income level.
He explained that the system is supported through contributions linked to income, with government support helping to maintain accessibility. The focus, he said, is on ensuring that citizens can access specialised medical expertise through a largely public healthcare network.
The healthcare model presents potential lessons for Ghana as it continues efforts to improve universal health coverage, strengthen public healthcare delivery and reduce disparities in access between urban and rural communities.
Ghana has also been expanding emergency healthcare infrastructure, including investments in emergency services, health personnel training and transportation systems.
Mansour also emphasised the role of transportation infrastructure in improving economic mobility, arguing that affordable and efficient transport systems allow people to access education, employment and business opportunities beyond their immediate communities.
He said subsidised transport services enable residents to live in one city while studying or working in another, describing mobility as a factor that “gives you access” to wider opportunities.
For Ghana, improving urban and intercity transportation remains critical to reducing productivity losses, supporting labour mobility and connecting communities to economic centres. Studies have identified transportation barriers as a challenge affecting access to essential services, including healthcare, particularly among vulnerable populations.
Mansour said policymakers should consider how education, healthcare and transport systems can work together rather than being developed separately. He described the three areas as interconnected foundations for creating communities where citizens can “develop and become whatever they want to be.”
