Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia

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The Delegation of the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia pays a visit to Switzerland

Under the support of the Swiss Development Agency, the Delegation of the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia paid a visit to Switzerland. During the visit, the Swiss side shared its experience regarding the effective functioning of the agricultural extension system in the country. The meetings were held at the Bern University of Applied Sciences, the Department of Agriculture, the School of Agriculture, Forestry and Food Sciences (HAFL) and the relevant services of the local cantons. The visit was organized by the  United Nations Development Programme "Modernization of the Vocational Education and Training and Extension Systems related to Agriculture in Georgia" project.

"The experience of the Swiss side was very interesting for us. We were provided with information about agricultural knowledge and innovation systems, as well as vocational and graduate programs during our visit to the Bern University of Applied Sciences. As we are all aware, the education system in Switzerland is at an exceptionally high level, namely, Swiss Climate Smart Agriculture program has both vocational and undergraduate programs. In addition, research studies were performed, whereupon, the results and findings of the research are being actively introduced through the extension service.

The agricultural extension service is also gradually developing in our country; meanwhile, it is important to strengthen vocational education. The sharing experience of the Swiss side assured us once again that we are on the right course and we should continue this process", said the Deputy Minister of Environmental Protection and Agriculture, Mr. Solomon Pavliashvili.

During the visit, the members of the delegation got acquainted with the rural development strategies that contribute to the improvement of farmers' skills and knowledge; also they got information about the rural development programs implemented by the state to provide financial support for farmers; the sides shared experience on the training and retraining programs for extension specialists, existing mechanisms for spreading knowledge among farmers and the Swiss model of Public Private Partnership (PPP), climate-smart agriculture approaches etc.