The Jewish Colonisation Association (JCA or ICA, Yiddish ייִק"אַ), in America spelled Jewish Colonization Association, is an organisation created on September 11, 1891, by Baron Maurice de Hirsch. Its aim was to facilitate the mass emigration of Jews from Russia and other Eastern European countries, by settling them in agricultural colonies on lands purchased by the committee in North America (Canada and the United States), South America (Argentina and Brazil) and Ottoman Palestine. Today ICA is still active in Israel in supporting specific development projects under the name Jewish Charitable Association (ICA). History Palestine and Israel In 1896 the JCA started offering support to Jewish farming communities newly established in Ottoman Palestine. In 1899 Baron Edmond James de Rothschild transferred title to his settlements ("moshavot") in Palestine along with fifteen million francs to the JCA. Starting on January 1, 1900 the JCA restructured the way in which the colonies received financial and managerial support, with the effect of making them more profitable and independent. Between 1900 and 1903 it created 4 new moshavot, Kfar Tavor, Yavniel, Melahamia (Menahamia), and Bait Vegan. In addition, it established an agricultural training farm at Sejera. The Palestine operation was restructured by Baron de Rothschild in 1924 as the Palestine Jewish Colonization Association (PICA) and placed under the directorship of his son James Armand de Rothschild. PICA transferred most of its properties to the State of Israel in 1957 and 1958. ICA resumed activities in Palestine in 1933, at first in association with another fund and from 1955 on by itself as "ICA in Israel". ICA is at present supporting projects in the fields of education, agriculture and tourism in the north (Galilee) and south (Negev) regions of Israel. Argentina Focused on agricultural colonies in Argentina, until East European Jews were forbidden to, even if in 1896, when Hirsch died, the association owned a thousand square kilometers of land in the country, on which lived a thousand households, the “Jewish gauchos”. Theodor Herzl considered it expensive and unrealistic, against Zadoc Kahn who presented the German Jewish philanthropist Baron Maurice de Hirsch with the project of setting up a Jewish colony in Argentina, before was created the I.C.A. in 1891. In 1920, 150,000 Jews lived in Argentina. and new colonies appeared: (Lapin, Rivera), Entre Ríos (San Gregorio, Villa Domínguez, Carmel, Ingeniero Sajaroff, Villa Clara, and Villaguay), and Santa Fe (Moisés Ville) (about 64% jews lived in