Moshe Rivlin, chairman of the Jewish National Fund Directorate, concluded a nationwide tour by calling upon all “American friends and supporters of the Jewish State” to respond decisively to the challenge of the JNF’s new Five-Year Master Plan. The plan calls for the site development for 80 new villages, the construction of 2000 kilometers of roads, the afforestation of 40,000 acres, the preparation of 12,000 acres of wasteland for new farming and 1000 parks and recreation areas.
Rivlin, in addressing some 100 JNF executives who assembled Sunday in New York from all parts of the country, stated that “it is vital for the Jewish National Fund to create ‘land facts’ in the Galilee where only 37 percent of the population is Jewish. By developing industrial complexes, by afforestation, by building roads and new settlements in this largely Arab-populated region in the State of Israel, we will reinforce and extend our presence and, hopefully, in the next few years, make the Galilee truly and almost wholly Jewish.”
Rivlin also reported that the JNF is currently operating in 300 locations throughout Israel and at seven times the level as existed 10 years ago.
Dr. Samuel I. Cohen, JNF executive vice president, told the meeting that 1978 has been one of the most successful years in JNF history and predicted a 20 percent rise this year in the JNF annual income. A highlight of the meeting was an address by Rabbi William Berkowitz, JNF president, who stressed the “unique ideology” of the JNF as a “potent and dynamic educational force in revitalizing Jewish life.”
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
