A total of $46,000,000–the greatest single portion provided by American Jews–was spent by United Israel Appeal agencies for their immigration and resettlement program during the first half of 1955, Dewey D. Stone, UIA national chairman, stated in a semi-annual report to the board of directors made public here today.
“The pressure of immigration and the need to resettle productively newcomers from North Africa,” Mr. Stone reported, “have pushed our expenditures about $2,000,000 ahead of budgetary estimates for the six-month period. These compelling needs have made it necessary for the Jewish Agency to incur a $10,000,000 deficit during the first half of this year of which $7,000,000 represents long-term loans while the balance are short-term credits.”
In his report, the UIA chairman stated that $28,000,000 had been spent in the general field of agricultural development. “This particular aspect of the UIA program is of special importance since it makes possible the effective operation of the ship-to-settlement program which is geared at avoiding long waiting periods in transition centers by bringing the newcomers directly to their homes on the farms.”
Mr. Stone pointed out that of the 12,000 new arrivals during the first half of 1955, about 65 percent went into agriculture; 20 percent settled in new development areas, while the rest joined relatives in urban and rural areas throughout the country. He underscored the contrast with the comparable period last year by reporting that in the first half of 1954 only eight percent of the immigrants settled in agriculture.
“This advance, which is so important for the productive index of the country, has been made possible by the strong support American Jews have been giving the United Jewish Appeal. The next few months of campaigning in communities throughout this country will be of crucial importance to Israel’s immigration and resettlement program and may well spell the difference between serious economic dislocation and important strides towards self-sufficiency,” Mr. Stone declared. The United Israel Appeal which helps finance the programs of the Jewish Agency and the Keren Hayesod, is the major beneficiary of the nationwide United Jewish Appeal campaign.
“Apart from the tense border situation,” Mr. Stone said, “the general condition of Israel is improving markedly, particularly in terms of advances on the economic front.”
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
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.
