By Noga Maliniak

As the director of Keren Ness, the Business Loan Fund managed by the Greater MetroWest Jewish Community Foundation, I am proud to report that last month we concluded the Special Ness Loan Fund for emergency assistance for the farmers of the Arava region.

The Arava area has served as the “salad bowl” for much of Eastern Europe for the past decade, but the current unrest between Russia and Ukraine has substantially weakened the market for Israeli produce. Add to that the financial shakiness in Europe, the threat in some countries of a boycott of Israeli goods, a drop in the exchange rate of the Euro, and an extremely wet and cold winter, and the result is a real disaster for most of the farmers in the area.

The Israeli government stepped forward with financial assistance, focusing on reducing what was the major cash crop and the hardest hit  ̶  peppers. Farmers who agreed to reduce the amount of peppers grown and to switch to alternative crops will receive assistance. Unfortunately, those funds will be paid over a period of years and do not address the most burning immediate need – funds to enable the planning of the coming crop.

The Jewish Agency for Israel (JAFI), which administers our loan funds as well as others, sent out a call to help augment the government support. In response, Keren Ness set aside dedicated funds and initiated a special project to identify farmers in Arava who were in dire need. 

Our committee interviewed 78 farmers in seven marathon days over a three-month period. Afterward, 70 loans of 300,000 NIS (New Israeli Sheckels) each were approved, for a total of approximately $750,000.  

This was a very difficult assignment because of the overwhelming feeling of unhappiness and even despair on the part of the farmers. They have invested many years (some as many as 40 years) in making the desert bloom (and demarking the Israeli border at the same time) and couldn’t bear to watch it deteriorate. We met hard-working people who are living in this less-than-hospitable landscape out of conviction. We met true Zionists who love their work and wish to provide a way of life that would encourage their children and grandchildren to do the same and remain close by.

I, on behalf of the farmers Of Arava, want to thank all of you for your support.

Keren Ness, which is run in partnership with JAFI and with additional support from the Greater Miami Jewish Federation, has made more than $17 million in loans to more than 334 businesses over the past eight years. The Keren Ness Fund is a small part of the Ness Fund of the Jewish Community Foundation which was established to support economic development in the Negev region of Israel with an emphasis on younger populations. For more information on this history and legacy of the Ness Fund, and to find out about the incredible effect it is having on Israel’s  Negev region, please visit our website.