EU offers €55 million COVID-19 support package to Georgia for development of agriculture, rural areas
Implemented in 2013 with a total budget of € 234.5 million so far, the main goal of ENPARD is to reduce rural poverty in Georgia. Photo: www.eeas.europa.eu.
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The EU Ambassador to Georgia, Carl Hartzell and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Georgia, David Zalkaliani signed an agreement today to kick off the fourth phase of the European Neighbourhood Programme for Agriculture and Rural Development (ENPARD IV), worth €55 million (about 125 million GEL).
The programme aims to enhance consumer protection, promote EU exports and improve livelihoods of rural population in Georgia.
Grateful for €55 million financial support of the #EU to Georgia for Rural and Agricultural Development of the country in the framework of the bilaterally signed Financing Agreement of the #ENPARD IV Programme @EUinGeorgia pic.twitter.com/b2d9OoOrD7
— David Zalkaliani (@DZalkaliani) December 17, 2020
It is a part of a wider assistance package given by the EU and Team Europe to support Georgia’s COVID-19 recovery.
Since 2013, with over 500 million GEL budget, the EU’s ENPARD programme has been providing extensive support to make Georgia’s agriculture more competitive and to improve living standards in rural areas. Looking forward, we would like to see more Georgian farmers, cooperatives and small and medium size enterprises better equipped to produce high quality products and export to the EU. We also support better infrastructure and services, growth of tourism, more effective local public-private partnerships and entrepreneurship in rural areas”, stated Carl Hartzell.
This is a remarkable volume of assistance, €55 million, of which €31 million is going to be direct budget support. However, a very important and efficient part of the assistance is a €24 million technical and grant component, which is going to have a complementary effect on the implementation of our policy also developed in close partnership with the EU,” stated Agriculture Minister Levan Davitashvili.
ENPARD IV will provide extended assistance in the food safety, sanitary and phyto-sanitary (SPS) sector to enhance consumer protection and to promote exports of Georgian products to EU member states. The programme will provide further support for the National Food Agency (NFA) for improved inspection and control systems and for continuation of the legal approximation process including enforcement of newly adopted regulations.
ENPARD IV will also improve the economic and social integration of vulnerable households in disadvantaged rural regions of Georgia, including eco-migrants, conflict-affected people, ethnic minorities, Georgian returnees and migrants.
Implemented in 2013 with a total budget of €234.5 million so far, the main goal of ENPARD is to reduce rural poverty in Georgia.
Farmers in 22 municipalities of Georgia will have the opportunity to obtain co-financing under a 3.2 million GEL (about $1m/€0.92m) grant programme offered by the European Union (EU), the Agriculture Ministry of Georgia and the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) for the purchase and installation of modern drip irrigation systems.
The European Union (EU), Georgia’s Ministry of Agriculture and Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) have issued grants for a total amount of 2.2 million GEL (about $690,651/€641,567) to support food production and security in Georgia amid the COVID-19 crisis.
A new European Union (EU) supported project worth €12 million will be launched in Georgia to help the country implement the agriculture development strategy for 2015-2020.
EU-funded projects with a budget of 22 million euros (60 million GEL) implemented by the UNDP and the FAO will provide direct assistance to rural communities and support the governments of Georgia and the Adjara Autonomous Republic in sustainable agriculture and rural development policy.
The European Union and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) have completed the fourth round of business bootcamps aimed at helping aspiring young entrepreneurs create and expand rural businesses.
EU Ambassador to Georgia Carl Harzell has said in his New Year statement that 2020 was a year that started with a political crisis and ended with another, election-related political crisis in Georgia.
Over 700 Georgian farmers participated in training programmes last year organised by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) with the support of the European Union (EU), under the ENPARD programme.
Lawrence Meredith, Director for Neighbourhood East and Institution Building at the European Commission, is visiting Tbilisi, where he said EU financial aid for Georgia should be accompanied by the country’s ‘clear progress’ in reforming the judiciary, public governance, and protection of human rights.