Israeli university.
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev was established in 1969 by David Ben-Gurion, Israel's first prime minister, to develop the Negev desert (60 percent of Israel's land mass and 10 percent of its population). Originally called the University of the Negev, in 1973 it was renamed to honor Ben-Gurion. The center of education and research in the area, it focuses on desert research, high technology, medicine, and regional development. The university has campuses at Beersheba and Sde Boker.
Besides a medical school, there are four faculties: engineering sciences, natural sciences, health sciences, and humanities and social sciences. The student population in 2002 was 15,000.
— MIRIAM SIMON





