The following is a statement from ISF to their members and partners:
A MESSAGE FOR OUR MEMBERS AND PARTNERS
Like all of you, we have been following the situation in the Middle East closely. We are deeply concerned and horrified by the loss of lives and ongoing violence. At ISF, community comes first. Ours has been affected too, first and foremost by the kidnapping of our friend and partner Dr Shoshan Haran and her family. As Executive Director of Fair Planet, a nongovernment organization, Dr Shoshan Haran has been instrumental in supporting smallholder farmers in Africa, helping them discover the benefits of high-quality seeds for high-yielding crops leading to improved nutrition and higher incomes for many families in countries like Ethiopia and Tanzania. Early this year, ISF and Fair Planet launched a Seed Resilience project in Rwanda, which aims to improve nutrition and food security outcomes for smallholder farmers in the country by facilitating their access to high-quality seeds and training on Good Agricultural Practices (GAP). Dr Shoshan Haran has likewise been a driving force behind this important initiative that would benefit an estimated 70,000 smallholder farmers in Rwanda. We call for the safe return of Dr. Haran and her family, and all other civilians. ISF, as an organization, envisions a world where the best quality seed is accessible to all, supporting sustainable agriculture and food security. We believe that there can be no food security without, first and foremost, peace.
SEED IS LIFE.
