The European Commission has drawn up a draft plan for emergency aid to farmers; Lithuania is set to receive nearly 10 million euros
Following the European Commission’s (EC) drafting of a regulation on emergency aid for farmers, Lithuania is set to receive €9.788 million in European Union (EU) funding from the agricultural reserve.
As announced by the Ministry of Agriculture on Wednesday, the draft regulation provides for €540 million in emergency financial support for farmers across the EU who are facing increased production costs due to rising fertiliser and energy prices.
Furthermore, the draft regulation provides for Member States to top up this amount by up to 200 per cent with national funds, thereby significantly increasing the total aid package for farmers.
The draft regulation implements the commitment set out in the Fertiliser Action Plan presented by the European Commission in May this year to mobilise funds from the agricultural reserve and provide urgent financial assistance to farmers.
According to the Ministry, in recent months Lithuania has consistently urged the European Commission to take swift decisions to help mitigate the impact of rising production costs on the agricultural sector.
In bilateral meetings with EC representatives and ministers from other Member States, the Minister for Agriculture, Andrius Palionis, has repeatedly drawn attention to the difficult situation in the dairy sector and the difficulties faced due to rising fertiliser, urging that EU support measures be mobilised as soon as possible.
On 19 May, at the Council of Ministers for Agriculture and Fisheries, following the European Commission’s presentation of the Fertiliser Action Plan, Rolandas Taraškevičius, Deputy Minister of Agriculture, who outlined Lithuania’s position, emphasised the need to provide a clear decision as soon as possible on the scope of support and its distribution amongst Member States.
The draft implementing regulation, drawn up within a short timeframe, confirms the European Commission’s commitment to the swift implementation of the Fertiliser Action Plan and paves the way for financial assistance to be provided in the near future to farmers most affected by increased production, according to the ministry.
“Lithuania has consistently sought to ensure that the European Union adopts concrete decisions as soon as possible and provides real financial assistance to farmers affected by rising production costs. The draft regulation prepared by the European Commission is an important step in this direction. We hope that the Member States will approve it and that the support will reach Lithuanian farmers as soon as possible“ – A. Palionis is quoted as saying in the press release.
The draft regulation will be considered by Member States in the coming weeks. Once it is approved, Lithuania will be able to immediately begin implementing support measures in accordance with national criteria, with a view to providing assistance as quickly as possible to those farmers most affected by the rise in production costs.
