Minister of State Werner Hoyer will represent the German Government when the Board of Trustees of the German-Israeli Future Forum Foundation meets today (29 November) in Sderot, Israel. On behalf of the German Government he will also hand over a check to the Israeli NGO “Natal” (Israeli Trauma Center for Victims of Terror and War), whose work is supported by the German Government.

This will be followed by talks in Erez on the security situation on the border with the Gaza Strip. The Minister of State wants to see for himself what arrangements are in place for access to and from Gaza, also with regard to humanitarian assistance and economic development.

In connection with the Board of Trustees meeting, Minister of State Hoyer issued the following statement:

“The German-Israeli Future Forum Foundation is one of our flagship bilateral cooperation projects.With over fifty joint projects in the field of higher education, research, culture, business and the media, the Foundation is building networks whose impact will be felt far into the future.

I would very much like to see the German-Israeli Future Forum Foundation acquire an even higher profile as one of our flagship bilateral cooperation projects.”

The German-Israeli Future Forum is a foundation of the Federal Republic of Germany and the State of Israel. It was founded at the initiative of the two countries’ heads of state to mark the 40th anniversary in 2005 of the establishment of diplomatic relations. The Foundation started work in 2007.

It seeks to foster exchange and network-building especially between young Germans and young Israelis. The aim is to forge long-term ties between citizens of both countries and create networks of multipliers keen to build the future together. Funding is provided for innovative and forward-looking projects in the field of culture, education, business, research and the media.