The Federation of Jewish Communities in the Czech Republic serves as an umbrella organization for Jewish Communities and other Jewish institutions in the country and brings together Jewish communities and affiliated organizations of various branches of Judaism. It represents the Czech Jewish community in dealings with domestic and international institutions and coordinates the activities of the communities in religious, social, educational, and cultural matters. It cooperates with state and local authorities as well as foreign organizations and actively opposes antisemitism, racism, and all forms of discrimination. Additionally, it safeguards the memory of the victims of the Shoah.
Currently there are nine official Jewish Communities in Bohemia and Moravia with approximately 3,000 registered members of which 1,400 reside in Prague. There is a number of various Jewish “secular” organizations which fall under the auspices of the Federation, e.g.. Beit Praha, the open Jewish congregation gathering mostly ex-patriot Americans and other foreigners residing in Prague, Union of Jewish Youth, member of the World Union of Jewish Students (WUJS), sporting clubs Maccabi and Hakoach, WIZO, the Women’s Zionist Organization or the Terezín Initiative, gathering of Czech Holocaust survivors. Altogether these institutions associate approximately another 2,000 people, however it is estimated that there are an additional 10 to 15,000 unregistered Jews in the country.
