Germany Supports the Crop Trust to Safeguard & Use Crop Diversity Globally
BONN, Germany (8 June 2021) – Germany and the Crop Trust are expanding their cooperation to help safeguard global crop diversity in perpetuity. In addition to the funding provided to the Crop Trust for the long-term support of genebanks, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) will also support the strategic development of the organization’s endowment fund.
The partnership will focus on enhancing the Crop Trust’s resource mobilization efforts and will support the development of new financing instruments to help meet the organizations’ funding targets. In addition, it will strengthen the Crop Trust’s work with key genebanks around the world, and amplify awareness of the organization’s mission through network-building and public awareness campaigns.
With this perspective, the Crop Trust and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) have signed an agreement. Its objective is to further support the Crop Trust to conserve worldwide agrobiodiversity and make it available for use; an evermore critical mission in the face of the rapidly changing climate and significant challenges to our food systems.
The three-year project will run till the end of 2023 and includes EUR 4.5 million in funding.
“Our mission to conserve crop diversity has never been more relevant or urgent,” says Crop Trust Executive Director, Stefan Schmitz. “The support of the government of Germany will play a fundamental role in furthering the Crop Trust mandate to help combat the effects of these crises on future food security—so critical to us all.”
“The Crop Trust is an important partner of our efforts to support and maintain agrobiodiversity worldwide and to strengthen resilience in agriculture and food systems,” says Sebastian Lesch, Head of Agricultural Division of BMZ. "We look forward to partnering and supporting the team to meet its goals, which are so important in providing solutions to the global crises we currently face.”
For more information, please contact: media@croptrust.org
About the Global Crop Diversity Trust
The Global Crop Diversity Trust, known as the Crop Trust, is an international organization working to support conservation and use of plant genetic resources. It supports genebanks, the Svalbard Global Seed Vault and pre-breeding activities around the world. The Crop Trust is recognized as an essential component of the funding strategy of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. For more information, see www.croptrust.org.
About the Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)
BMZ is one of the 14 ministries of the German Federal Republic. Through global cooperation with other states, organizations and civil societies, it aims at promoting development in all areas of life. On the basis of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), it coordinates projects in 60 partner-countries on all continents. For more information see: www.bmz.de/en.
About the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH
As a service provider with worldwide operations in the fields of international cooperation for sustainable development and international education work, GIZ works with its partners to develop effective solutions that offer people better prospects and sustainably improve their living conditions. GIZ is a public-benefit federal enterprise and supports the German Government and a host of public and private sector clients in a wide variety of areas, including economic development and employment promotion, energy and the environment, and peace and security. For more information see giz.de/.
Categories: For The Press, Press Releases, Genebanks