Each person told us their firms were very ready to employ Palestinians, either way. We were told that Israel had 30,000 high tech jobs unfilled and that this level of demand is expected to continue for the next few years. Indeed, hundreds of Indian software writers are currently in the country or, interestingly, located in Cyprus, but working for Israeli IT firms. The U.S. has, by far, the biggest demand for IT professionals. The industry currently imports well over 100,000 IT professionals each year.
Foreign firms write software in their home country, and deliver it via the Internet.
Alternatively, American firms establish software-engineering units overseas and import the product over the Internet. Firms in Egypt and Jordan have grown sufficiently that they are able to market specialized software in India, Pakistan and other countries. Palestinians, working on their own, or with Jordanian and Egyptian firms, can also participate in this market. In sum, there is demand for Palestinian IT professionals. The question then is how can Palestinians supply the market.