Azerbaijan, Baku, Jan. 11 / Trend A. Akhundov /
The various proposals are being discussed in Azerbaijan to change the mechanism for subsidizing farmers, Azerbaijani Minister of Agriculture Ismet Abbasov told media on Friday.
"The appropriate bodies are discussing possible variants," he said. "At present, the process of giving subsidies for purchasing motor oil and fuel for agricultural producers starts in summer, and subsidies for purchasing fertilizer and seeds on preferential terms - in winter. In particular, it is proposed to pay them together. Moreover, one of the proposals is to make a requirement for the grain manufacturers to indicate a kind of seeds, they are using."
He added that changing the mechanism does not mean reducing an amount of subsidy. This action is aimed at increasing the efficiency of using funds.
According to the decision taken by the relevant state commission today, chaired by Abbasov, subsidies worth 24.89 million manat will be given to 158,000 agricultural producers in 2013.
The official exchange rate is 0,7848 AZN/USD on Jan. 11.