Dr Ron Malka is the former Ambassador and Director General, Ministry of Industry and Economy, Israel. He became the Executive Chairman of the Haifa Port Company in Apr 2023, after the Adani Group and Israel’s Gadot Group won the tender to privatise the port. His leadership, combined with the expertise of both companies, is propelling Haifa Port to new heights.

Dr Malka holds degrees in Economics and Business Administration (Bar Ilan University, 1990), an MBA in Finance (1994), and a PhD in Economics (2004). He served in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) from 1983 to 2007, retiring as a Full Colonel after nine years in the Intelligence Corps and sixteen years in the Chief of Staff's Financial Advisory Unit.

He then pursued dual careers in academics and finance. From 2008 to 2016, Dr Malka was a Senior Lecturer in Banking, Economics and Capital Markets at the Interdisciplinary Center, Herzliya, and the Academic Center, Netanya. He was then Dean of the School of Financial Markets and Banking at the Academic Center of Law and Business (2016-2018).

Dr Malka has provided financial guidance to Israeli and international companies and served as an economic advisor to the Israeli Prime Minister’s commission on the defense budget. He was a Director and Acting Chairman of the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (2008-2014) and held leadership roles in various financial committees and investment positions.

He spoke to a-connect about his early life in Israel, time in India as ambassador and the Haifa Port.

Tell us about your early life and service in the military.

Both my parents are teachers who immigrated from Morocco. In 1948, when Israel was established, there were 600,000 people – now we are ten million. This is due to mass immigration of Jews from across the world to our homeland, Israel, for which our people had prayed for 2000 years.

I was born in a small town in northern Israel – Acre. I grew up in a household of four boys – me and my three brothers. Our home was 300 meters away from beach and this influenced our childhood a lot. I’ve always felt that the sea is what balances me in life.

Like every young Israeli, I joined the Israel Defense Forces as a high school graduate at the age of 18 years. After I finished three years of mandatory service, I got to stay and work as an intelligence officer. The military also offered to cover my educational expenses. Coming from a modest family, this is not the kind of offer you say not to. And so, 25 years later, I retired as a Full Colonel with a PhD. in Economics. There is a phrase in Hebrew which translates to: “The path is wiser than the one who walks on it”. I believe the path just took me.

Would you attribute your interest in academia to your parents?

Yes. In our family, education was the top priority. It ranked even higher than food. And it is education that enabled my upward mobility. In my country, much like India, if you have enough aspirations, there is no ceiling. There may be obstacles, but you can make progress.

So yes, teaching as a way of serving society did percolate me. After retiring from the military, I worked as a senior lecturer and then as the Dean of the School of Financial Markets and Banking at the Academic Center of Law and Business. Parallelly, I pursued a career in finance as board member of the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange – eventually I was appointed its acting chairman. After completing three tenures, which is the most that is allowed by law, I was appointed chairman of three institutional investment funds in Israel.

After successful careers in academia and finance, you worked in India as the ambassador of Israel. How did this come about?

It was clear that there is a huge economic potential between India and Israel that was not fulfilled and it was imperative for the next ambassador to have a background in finance and defence – both of which I had. So in 2018, I got a phone call from my Prime Minister to leave everything and go serve in India as the ambassador of Israel.

My wife Lea had to quit her successful career – she was at that time the CEO of food company. But as a family we believed that this was a higher mission, a mission for our people and our country. Lea and I took our three kids and our dog and moved to India. It was very challenging – less than a year later after we moved, covid broke out. It was a big adventure – to function at that time, to evacuate 5000 Israelis and to work on the relationship between both countries. It was not easy, but it was every bit fulfilling. As a family we were happy to experience India in this manner.

Which of these roles has been the closest to your heart? And what would you say has been the most formative experience in your life, personally?

Professionally, being the ambassador has been the most fulfilling role. It gave me a chance to achieve the biggest impact. Even today, when I see our formulas come to fruition, I feel immense pride. Personally, becoming a father was a turning point. My wife and I had our first child when I was 36 years old. It was emotional, exciting and beautiful. My eldest son Amir is now 20 years old, he is in the special forces. And then I have 18-year-old twins – a son, Asaf, and a daughter, Maya. Asaf is studying medicine in Jerusalem university as part of his training to become combat physician and my daughter will become an air defence warrior.

What drew you towards becoming Executive Chairman of Haifa Port company and what has the journey been like?

I think what impacted my decision is the chemistry that I felt with our Group Chairman Gautam Adani. He is a special man. I admire him and am privileged to work with him. I appreciate the spirit he instills in the Group. I’m also privileged to work with Mr Sudipta Bhattacharya the CTO of the Group who I very much appreciate, especially his strategic thinking. I could see that in this role I can bring a lot to the table — given my exposure and expertise in military, finance and business. On 31 Jan 2025, Haifa port completed two years with the Adani Group. I am grateful to have the opportunity and responsibility to be the bridge between two countries and two cultures. There are also tactical challenges in integrating an Israeli government company into the Adani conglomerate. So, at this age, I am still getting educated. It is exciting and challenging and generates positive energies within me. Also, it is not common that you make friends at this age – friends for life – but here I am fostering meaningful friendships, and I consider that to be a gift from life.

How does this variety of exposure shape your leadership style?

It is said that you can leave the military but the military never leaves you. After 25 years of wearing the uniform and being a part of a hierarchy where all ranks are respected, I learnt the value of respect and being a good listener. That is what I think is important to be a leader. You need to really listen to the other side with patience – to understand what they are saying but also guage their feelings. At the end of the day, we are emotional beings. Technology and tech can solve many problems but it can’t feel on our behalf.

You have spent considerable time in India in different capacities. How do you perceive India’s rise on the global stage?

Once I got to India, I just fell in love with the people. I was so attracted and found something about its culture to be very familiar. I figured it was because of the similarity in emotional structure, the family values, the importance of integrity and commitment. There is no doubt that India is an emerging superpower that will lead the world. The way in which its massive young population is getting educated and their devotion to the country will propel India to success. It brings to the world values of peace, compromise and friendship – this is what world needs. The success of India will be success of world.