BFC. Georgian Agriculture Finance Bulletin. Edition #89, January 2020
that the fruit trees and grapevines that they plant will be of a certified quality, free of viruses and diseases. The event was organized by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) under the European Union (EU)-funded Innovative Action for Private Sector Competitiveness in Georgia project, which is part of wider EU4Business support to private sector development in Georgia.
8)
National Food Agency hosts conference on pest control
January 20th, 2020, https://agenda.ge/en/news/2020/177
Earlier this month, the National Food Agency hosted a conference to discuss methods of fighting agricultural pests, especially the newly-appeared Drosophila suzukii (commonly known as the spotted wing drosophila – a fruit fly). The conference, which was organized by the National Food Agency and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), was attended by leading U.S. and Georgian scientists.
9)
JICA technical assistance program to develop agricultural cooperatives
January 27th, 2020, https://kalo.ge/news/view?id=8127
Georgian representatives have meet with representatives of the Japan Office of the International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to discuss priority directions for sharing Japanese experience and other cooperation initiatives. The main topic of discussion during this meeting, however, was the development of agricultural cooperatives in Georgia. To this end, a group of Japanese experts will study the needs of cooperatives and prepare a set of recommendations, including completing study tours in Japan. The development of cooperatives is important for Georgia and its agricultural sector as Georgia currently has 1,044 registered agricultural cooperatives, incorporating a total of 10,739 farmers.
Private Sector 10) Ministry of Agriculture’s 2020 budget set December 29th, 2019, http://georgiatoday.ge/news/18878/Agri-Review-December-2019-%E2%80%93-The-Sector-at-a-Glance
Parliament has approved the state budget for 2020, with the Ministry of Agriculture being allocated GEL 353 million (2.4% of the total budget). Compared to the 2019 budget, this represents a 4% increase. Of the GEL 353 million, GEL 293 million will be directed toward agricultural development, and GEL 60 million will be used on environmental protection. In general, more funding will be provided to the Scientific-Research Center, the Agriculture and Rural Development Agency and Georgian Amelioration. At the same time, there will be slight budgetary decreases for the National Food Agency, the Agriculture Development Program and the National Wine Agency. The largest share of the Ministry’s budget will be directed to the Agriculture and Rural Development Agency (GEL 143 million), which will continue financing its preferential agricultural credit project. The Ministry’s budget also includes GEL 2.4 million to establish a new agency focused on land-related issues. The National Agency for Sustainable Land Management and Land Use Monitoring will be charged with developing an agricultural land policy, collecting data on agricultural land use and establishing a unified land database.
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