BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 5
By Tamilla Mammadova – Trend:
The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) has attracted 65 million lari ($19.6 million) investments to Georgia in five years within the framework of the Agriculture Modernization, Market Access and Flexibility (AMMAR) program, Trend reports via the country's Ministry of Agriculture.
IFAD has been operating in Georgia since 1997 and is one of the most important donors in the Georgian agriculture system, which has already implemented five projects for a total cost of $185 million.
The fifth IFAD program in Georgia, called AMMAR, began in 2016 with the aim of helping to increase rural incomes.
Under the Irrigation and Infrastructure component of the program, repairs were carried out on eight irrigation systems; as a result, water supply has been improved on an area of up to 6,486 hectares, which is used by up to 4,500 families.
Construction work was carried out at nine infrastructure facilities. Rural roads and bridges were improved and built. Up to 3,000 families use the modernized infrastructure.
In Kakheti, as part of the program, two coastal dams were built on the river, which protect 320 hectares of agricultural land from flooding. In the regions of Shida Kartli and Kakheti, 26 km of windbreaks have been planted, as a result, 1,410 hectares of land will be protected from wind erosion.
In addition, 591 grants were issued to support primary production, 13 grants to processing enterprises.
Some 241 people received funding under the Young Entrepreneur Program, 17 demonstration sites were organized, where more than 2,400 people underwent theoretical and practical training.
To help improve the legal framework, a National Climate Change Adaptation Plan for the agricultural sector has been prepared.
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