Over 90 million euros from the PRDP have been approved for the implementation of investment projects – Agro Plovdiv – 2024-09-23 14:59:29

The European crisis fund will grant nearly 11 million euros to Bulgarian farmers because of drought and fires

“The European Commission has approved without objection the seventeenth amendment of the Rural Development Program (RDP) for the period 2014-2020 and over 90 million euros will be realized for investment projects.” This was stated in Brussels by the Minister of Agriculture and Food, Dr. Georgi Tahov, to the media. He added that the redistribution of the funds is from the European Agricultural Fund for the Development of Rural Areas and will guarantee a balanced and effective channeling of the financial resource under the Program, in accordance with the set strategic goals and priorities at the national and European level. Funds will be transferred to sub-measures 7.2, 4.1 and 4.2 of the RDP 2014-2020. This redistribution ensures efficient use of funds in accordance with national and European priorities, supporting the successful completion of the program period.

At the same time, Minister Takhov informed that the European Commission proposes to grant 10.9 million euros of crisis aid for Bulgarian farmers who suffered from unfavorable climatic conditions in the spring and summer of 2023. 11 million euros, which is happening for the first time under this mechanism”, said Minister Takhov and added that after the final decision, which is expected on October 7, “a total of over 200 million BGN will go to Bulgarian agriculture”.

Minister Takhov recalled that at the beginning of September, Bulgaria requested the activation of funds from the agricultural reserve of the European Union due to the damage caused by the drought and fires. The Ministry of Agriculture and Food sent a written request to the Commission to activate a protective mechanism. Bulgaria was affected by the drought, which damaged the spring crops, corn and sunflower being the most affected. The funds will make it possible to compensate farmers who lost part of their production and, as a result, part of their income. This aid is part of a total package of 119.7 million euros distributed among five EU member states, including Germany, Estonia, Italy and Romania. The funds will compensate for losses suffered by drought and fires that affected staple crops such as corn and sunflowers.