FACTS AND FIGURES

• Inhabitans: 160 000

• Area: 3500 qm²

• Height: 80 m

• Average precipitation: 520 ml per year

• Year of foundation: 1921

 

GEOGRAPHY

Ramat Gan is located in the middle of the coastal plain that stretches from Ashkelon to Mount Carmel. The city is built on limestone hills and sand dunes, so a large part of the city is flat. Only a few small hills elevate by a few meters. Being only 30 minutes by car from the sea, Ramat Gan has a Mediterranean climate with long, hot and dry summers (24°C-32°C) and short, cool and wet winters (10°C-17°C). On its western border are the cities of Tel Aviv and Givatayim, and to the east it borders Bnei Brak. Together with other cities in the area, Ramat Gan belongs to the Tel Aviv metropolitan region with in total 1.5 million residents.

 

History

Ramat Gan was founded in 1921. At that time, the today big city was a small settlement and people earned their money in the agricultural sector. However, this increasingly changed as more and more people moved to the centrally located and very green area. Hence, the community got almost completely urbanized and turned into a major industrial and commercial city, with the population growing to 62,000 by 1950. The early history of Ramat Gan is closely connected to Avraham Krinitzi, who used to be the city's mayor for 43 years. Two important events in the 1960s made Ramat Gan what it is today: The incorporation of the "Tel Hashomer" hospital and the "Bar Ilan" University in 1961 into the urban area of Ramat Gan as well as the establishment of the Israeli Diamond Exchange in 1968. During the first Gulf War in 1991, Ramat Gan was hit several times by Scud missiles from Iraq.

 

Ramat Gan today

Ramat Gan is famous for its more than 130 public gardens and parks. The largest is the "Avraham Krinitzi National Park" and is located on the southern outskirts of the city. Especially during weekends, it is teeming with people barbecuing in large groups or taking a stroll in the cooler evening hours. Nearby is the "Safari Park", which houses wild animals. This zoo tries to keep the animals as close to nature as possible and to create conditions as in their genuine habitats. The Safari Park is one of the main attractions for children throughout the entire country. Ramat Gan also stands for the largest diamond exchange in the world, with more than 100,000 people employed in the connection to it. The high risers of the exchange building complex form a unique skyline, somewhat comparable to Frankfurt. The newest building is the 244 m high "City Gate Tower". It is the tallest building in the Middle East.

The administration of the "Garden City" Ramat Gan spends a lot of money on its educational programs. One third of the budget is spent on education, which supports the best schools in Israel. This includes above all the "Bar Ilan" University, with its three colleges, 10 high schools and 30 elementary schools. Ramat Gan's theaters and several museums complete the picture of a city with a wide range of cultural offerings. This is not the only reason why Ramat Gan has gained the reputation of being one of the cities with the highest quality of living in Israel.

In addition to Weinheim, Ramat Gan has other sister cities around the world:

Kassel (Germany), England Barnet (London, England), France Strasbourg (France), Poland Wroclaw (Poland), Hungary Szombathely (Hungary), China Shenyang (China), Peru San Borja (Lima, Peru), United States Phoenix (USA), Germany Main-Kinzig-Kreis (Germany), Russia Penza (Russia)