Ben-Gurion University of the Negev the Albert Katz International School for Desert Studies, and the Ben-Gurion Research Institute for the Study of Israel and Zionism. Ben-Gurion University was established in 1969 as the University of the Negev with the aim of promoting the development of the Negev desert that comprises more than sixty percent of Israel. The University was later renamed after Israel's founder and first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion, who believed that the future of the country lay in this region. After Ben-Gurion's death in 1973, the University was renamed Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. In 2016, long-time friends, the late Dr. Howard and
Bill on the Arrangement of Bedouin Settlement in the Negev better integration of Bedouin in Israeli society, and significantly reduce the economic and social gaps between the Bedouin population in the Negev and Israeli society. By contrast, Jewish families have been encouraged to settle in this part of the country to make the desert bloom and small, gated farming communities – fully serviced with water and electricity – have sprung up close to the Bedouin villages. The government claims that the bill will expand Bedouin communities, some unrecognized communities will be recognized and receive public services, and infrastructure will be renewed, all within the framework of the Beer Sheva District