Baku, Azerbaijan, September 6
By Tamilla Mammadova – Trend:
The starting point for the Ministry of Environment and Agriculture of Georgia is taking active measures to strengthen the private sector working in the related fields, said minister Levan Davitashvili, Trend reports citing the Ministry.
“The main body for the implementation of our policy is the Agency for Agricultural Development. This is a new agency that is engaged in agricultural cooperation, implementing industry programs and providing knowledge and information to the population”, he said.
According to the minister, this service will ultimately receive European accreditation, and farmers will receive support from international projects and donor organizations, in addition to funds allocated from the state budget.
“We will have access to international funds, which will allow us to increase financial resources to support our farmers and entrepreneurs in rural areas,” the minister said.
According to Davitashvili, despite problems in the country's tourism sector, in the first nine months of 2019, the number of visitors to protected areas in Georgia increased by eight percent, and revenues increased by 30 percent compared to the same period last year.
The minister noted an increase in the area of protected areas. According to him, this year their area increased by 11 percent, and in the future it is planned to increase the protected area to 100,000 hectares. It is noteworthy that the four protected territories of Georgia were first presented to UNESCO for obtaining the status of natural heritage.