Minister Davitashvili: “We are launching agricultural-farming mechanization program from September”
“Upon an initiative of the Prime Minister of Georgia, we have promised our population to ensure co-funding of the mechanization, which is set forth in the 10-year plan for agricultural development. The respective programming is of utmost importance for the population, who reside at villages and are engaged into farming. This is a core request and demand from our citizens, which we have numerously recorded during our visits. Therefore, we have decided to significantly increase funding to the project, which we had been also operating throughout the previous years. Starting from September, we will accept applications from applicants willing to be part of the program. We will deploy grant co-funding, thus, making it possible to issue a part of equipment’s costs as a grant; as for the remaining amount – we will fund the latter through preferential, credit or lease resources. We will empower our population with significant resources to purchase agricultural-farming mechanization, that had been a challenge for them. We will enable funding for small mechanization – up to 20, 000 GEL for equipment; as for medium mechanization – we will enable funding between 20, 000 to 100, 000 GEL for purchasing equipment; a large mechanization will enjoy funding for equipment exceeding 100, 000 GEL. The latter entails major equipment, as well as all the amenities, required by our citizens for agricultural-farming activities” – Minister of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia, Mr Levan Davitashvili stated at the session of the Government. Worth of the agricultural-farming mechanization program is 50 million GEL. The program is implemented by the Agricultural and Rural Development Agency and entails procurement of an equipment that shall be new. Within the co-funding, a total amount per beneficiary shall be determined in a following manner: in case an equipment to be procured is up to 20, 000 GEL, then, the co-funding of the latter equipment shall be 35 % of the total cost; co-finding of an equipment worth of 20, 000 – 100, 000 GEL is 35 %; in case, co-funding of equipment is not less than 100, 000 GEL, then, co-funding shall be 30 % of the total cost. The same terms will be applied to the LTD “Agricultural Logistics and Services Company” upon funding agricultural-farming equipment, including purchase of harvesters. Applications to the program will be accepted in an electronic format; potential entries will be accepted and reviewed on a rolling basis.