THE JEWISH WORLD   MANOF KROVIM PROJECT TO ENCOURAGE ALIYAH FROM THE WEST - NOW VIA VIDEOCONFERECE As part of its efforts to encourage aliyah from the West, the Jewish Agency has, for the past four years, been running the Manof Krovim project. New immigrants who have been integrated into Israel try to make contact with potential olim in their native countries, primarily among their family and friends. The advantage of this project is that it creates unmediated contact between the oleh and those abroad, enabling information to be transmitted directly. Until now, Manof Krovim has taken place primarily through standard channels, such as email, letters, and phone calls. This week for the first time, videoconferencing was used. Ten new immigrants from Argentina who came to Israel through various JAFI projects came to the videoconference room in the Northern Region headquarters in Carmiel. 20-30 people who were interested in aliyah were waiting in the Jewish Agency building in Buenos Aries. For the next two hours, a "virtual meeting" took place that focused on lessening anxieties and offering information about absorption opportunities and life in Israel.

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