Bio-diversity

Provide funding to BERC in the context of demonstration project to establish a community seed bank (CSB) in the northern area of the West Bank as a complementary component of the BERC-Til educational garden. The CSB will function as a center for seed requirements of farmers to enhance and keep alive the tradition of nurturing diversity through access to seed of farmers capacity building in producing desired seed of specific crop cultivars; providing strategic seed reserve in drought years; production of good quality seed; ensuring farmers seed security at the household level. The project will contribute to the genetic resources conservation at the community level within the framework of sustainable agriculture. To serve and fulfill the rights of rural communities in on-farm conservation of agricultural biodiversity, recovery and restoration of both the seeds and their plant genetic resources of selection of crops including wheat, barely, lentil, chichpea, in addition to local varieties of food crops e.g vegetable marrow, pumpkins, and okra. Managing the necessarily proper infrastructure for the community seed Bank i.e. temporary storage room and drying room of seeds demonstrating different methods of drying including, desiccants, drying cabinets and NGB apparatus, seed processing, seed testing laboratory, seed manipulation area, germplasm, mid term conservation cold room, and farmers meeting room. Strengthening the capacity of BERC in the areas of plant conservation, research, on farm characterization and evaluation of materials collected and stored at the seed bank, monitoring of seed viability, agricultural extension sand education which will reflect positively on the Palestinian communities.

Palestine