The Union Cabinet today approved a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Israel on the India-Israel Industrial R&D and Technological Innovation Fund (I4F).

According to the MoU, which was signed last month during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the Jewish state, the countries will make a contribution of four million USD each for the fund annually for five years.

The fund will be governed by a joint board which will consist of four members from each country.

"The MoU envisages promotion of bilateral Industrial R&D and Innovation cooperation in the fields of science and technology by extending support to joint projects for innovative or technology-driven new or improved products, services or processes," a government statement said.

Such projects, it said, will lead to affordable technological innovations in focus areas of mutual interest such as water, agriculture, energy and digital technologies.

Institutional support in building up consortia, including private industry, enterprises and R&D institutions from India and Israel, will be enabled through these collaborative projects, the statement said.

The activities supported by this joint fund would increase the techno-economic collaboration between the two countries by investing in jointly developed technology projects and collaborations based on technological innovation, it said.

It would also provide a comprehensive set of support tools to encourage joint projects that convert "know-how" into "show-how", the statement said.

It is expected that this will foster and strengthen the eco-system of innovation and techno-entrepreneurship in India and will contribute directly to the Start-up India programme, it said.

The Cabinet also approved the MoU between India and Myanmar for the conservation of earthquake-damaged pagodas at Bagan in Myanmar.

The pact will be signed during Modi's visit to Myanmar during September 6-7 2017.

"Implementation of the project will further strengthen India's enduring ties in culture and religion with Myanmar. It will also generate immense goodwill for India among the people of Myanmar due to the religious significance as well as the touristic significance of the project," the statement added.

Bagan is one of the premier tourist attractions of Myanmar.