Goodbye gift Gerard Backx
Gerard Backx, former CEO, says goodbye to Royal HZPC Group. He would like to ask anyone who wants to give him a goodbye gift, for a donation to a fund that is close to his heart instead: the Paul Speijer Fund.
About the Paul Speijer Fund
The Paul Speijer Fund offers talented students from low-income countries in Africa the opportunity to pursue an MSc degree in Plant Sciences at Wageningen University & Research (WUR). They then take the knowledge they gained back to their local communities, where they can make a difference as knowledge leaders for African food institutions, farmers and the food supply.
Gerard and Paul Speijer
Gerard and Paul Speijer were scientific friends until Paul’s airplane had a dramatic crash in Western Africa. Paul lost his life in this event and a scientific career suddenly ended. As Paul was dedicated to the development of plant science in local African institutes, his wife Nicole started a named fund within the University Fund Wageningen to pursue his goal.
Gerard Backx: ‘Like Paul and Nicole, I really endorse the development of powerful and independent African plant institutes. Any donation for this cause will be most welcome; All donations will go towards the Paul Speijer Fund, providing scholarships for promising students from lower income countries in Africa, so that they can pursue a Master’s degree in Plant Sciences at WUR.’
The impact of your gift
When I worked in the semi-arid region of Kenya, I saw farmers struggling to produce food. The soil was very degraded. I knew I had to get a master's degree to gain more knowledge, but I could never have saved enough money to get a master's degree in Kenya. I was so happy when I got a scholarship to study in Wageningen. In Wageningen, I learned that intercropping pulses with grains will provide more nutrients in the soil and higher maize production. This scholarship not only helps students, but also their families, their community and their region.