Published: November 16, 2025 · Tedros Editorial
CBS: 177,600 Ethiopian-Israelis — updated Sigd 2025 data
Israel's Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) published updated figures on the Ethiopian-Israeli community ahead of the 2025 Sigd holiday — covering demographics, geographic distribution, higher education and births.
Demographics
At the end of 2024, the Ethiopian-Israeli community numbered about 177,600 people: roughly 93,400 born in Ethiopia (immigrants) and about 84,200 born in Israel — meaning nearly half the community was already born in the country, reflecting the maturing "second generation."
Geographic distribution
64.6% of the community lives in the Central and Southern districts. The city with the highest concentration of community members is Netanya.
Education
The education picture is mixed: 93.7% of 12th-grade students of Ethiopian descent sat for matriculation exams, compared with 95.1% of the general population — a small but real gap at the matriculation stage.
Further along the academic path, the picture reverses: among those eligible for matriculation, 57.7% of the Ethiopian-Israeli community go on to a bachelor's degree, compared with just 39.1% in the general population — a significantly higher continuation rate. In total, 4,151 students of Ethiopian descent were studying for an academic degree.
Births
4,010 babies were born in the past year to women of Ethiopian descent.