Economy Minister: US support important for Georgia’s EU integration, including in reforming agriculture
He also pointed out that the USAID programme contributed to the identification of challenges in various agribusinesses and their overcoming throughout the country, adding the enterprises had benefited from the increase in exports, which amounted to $148 million. Photo via Economy Ministry
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Georgian Economy Minister Levan Davitashvili on Wednesday highlighted the close cooperation with the United States and the importance of its support to Georgia, including in the process of the country’s European integration and reforming agriculture.
In his address at a summary event of the activities of the US Agency for International Development’s Agriculture Programme in the country, Davitashvili thanked USAID for the assistance in bringing the agricultural sector in Georgia closer to European standards, adding the programme was “one of the best examples of sectoral partnership between our countries”.
Davitashvili said the modernisation of the agricultural sector was one of the priorities of the EU-Georgia Association Agreement, and emphasised the “great contribution” of the US and USAID’s Programme in this regard.
The [USAID Agriculture] programme has been running successfully for five years, and this assistance has brought quite significant results not only for individual beneficiaries but also made a significant contribution to the development of [Georgia’s] agriculture as a whole”, the Minister stressed, adding the programme was successful in all directions of the country’s agricultural development strategy.
He also pointed out that the USAID programme contributed to the identification of challenges in various agribusinesses and their overcoming throughout the country, adding the enterprises had benefited from the increase in exports, which amounted to $148 million.
The Minister said logistics remained one of the most urgent challenges in the agriculture sector, highlighting the importance of opening a cargo terminal at Kutaisi International Airport in the near future.
The event, organised by the USAID, was also addressed by Otar Shamugia, the Minister of Agriculture and Environmental Protection and Robin Dunnigan, the US Ambassador to Georgia.