The budget for 2023 has increased by 18%, the Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment, Kostas Kadis, said on Friday during the presentation and discussion at the Finance and Budget Committee of the budget proposal of the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment for 2023.
Mr. Kadis said that looking at the Ministry's budget, one immediately realizes how important its action is, since it focuses on sectoral policies that are at the core of the new development model that the European Union wants to adopt, the green deal. We manage, he continued, issues such as climate change, the circular economy, waste management, biodiversity conservation, the farm-to-plate strategy that wants products and food that are produced safely and methodology that respects the environment.
He noted that the fact that the budget for 2023 has increased by 18% is indicative of the importance that the Government attaches to the matters of competence of the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment. “Of the 298 million that was last year's approved budget, we reach 352 million, that is, we have an increase of 54 million euros,” he said. He added that, this increase is mainly due to the increase in development expenditure. “We don't just stop at the approval of funds, but we implement projects and this can be seen from the implementation rate of our Ministry's budget, which in recent years has consistently exceeded 80% and this year it is estimated that it will exceed 85%,” said Mr. .Somebody.
During the presentation of the budget the Minister presented, among other things, the special challenges and the basic features of the budget, while in order to manage environmental issues he announced the creation of the General Directorate of Environment, which will operate under the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment. The unprecedented crises did not leave the primary sector unaffected, the Minister said, and it is a challenge to maintain the viability of the primary sector in the conditions created by these crises.
The aim, he said, is to make greater use of the available tools, the financial opportunities provided by the Multiannual Financial Framework of the European Union, as well as through the Recovery and Resilience Mechanism, the European Structural and Investment Funds, the Operational Programs of both the 2014-2020 programming period , as well as the 2021-2027 period, as well as the new Joint Policy Strategic Plan 2023-2027, the Program concerning the Sea, Fisheries and Aquaculture, as well as other offered programs.
Also asked by journalists, after the end of the session, whether additional measures will be taken to support the agricultural and livestock sector due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the Minister stated that the situation is being monitored and it is indicative of the fact that in the last three years for to deal with the crises and the effects in the agricultural sector, dozens of measures have been taken with a budget that reaches fifty million euros.
“If we see that there is a need, we will support our agricultural world again. After all, Cyprus was one of the countries that have taken the lead in shaping the tools at the European level to support the agricultural sector,” he said. He also mentioned that in collaboration with the Ministry of Energy, farmers have been given the opportunity to install photovoltaic systems, which are financed through the rural development program.
The Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources, Member of Parliament for AKEL, Giannakis Gavriel, stated that what can safely be said about the proposed budget is that it was prepared and submitted “as if nothing at all is happening in the economy and society”. A budget, he continued, that ignores the dramatic situation in which the agricultural world has fallen in the last year and a half and the fact that livestock farmers are on the verge of destruction.
He then spoke of a budget that ignores the unsustainable increases in the cost of production and does not include anything new in terms of supporting the farming world. He said that, the price of agricultural basic production oil has doubled within a year. The same and worse, he added, applies to fertilizers, pesticides, animal feed, and electricity. It is not enough just for the Government to identify the problems, support is needed today, not tomorrow, he said.
“We welcome, even if it has a strong pre-election color, the recent decision for extraordinary support of 3.4 million in certain sectors, but it is not enough,” he said. Another decision has also been pending, he said, for 7 months, which has not yet been implemented since last May for 9.6 million. He also mentioned that the issue of exploitation of farmers by traders and middlemen worsened during the days of the present Government.
DISY Member of Parliament, Charalambos Pazaros stated that despite the difficulties of the times, the budget presented is a balanced development budget aimed at realizing his vision for a greener, cleaner and more efficient economy and for a more competitive and sustainable agriculture, animal husbandry and fishing. It aims, he added, at the sustainable management of our natural resources, the development of the rural and coastal areas of Cyprus, the protection of the environment, the creation of new employment opportunities in the primary sector, ultimately improving the quality of life of citizens.
He also stated that, in the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, the implementation of 19 measures with a total value of €200 million is foreseen. 2 measures concern, he said, Grant Plans, 13 concern development projects and 4 measures are reformatory. Of the proposed development spending for 2023, 59% reflects Recovery and Resilience Plan projects. He stated that the Democratic Alarm supports the vision of the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment and declares its presence in its effort.
Referring to the Ministry's environmental dimension, AKEL MP Nikos Kettiros spoke of the Ministry's “almost non-existent” environmental policy. Regarding Akamas, he said that “we are talking about a clear sell-off, as requested by Mr. Anastasiadis in his recent announcements”. “Is it possible for the President of a country to raise the issue of finding possible ways to bypass the opinion of the Environmental Authority” he asked. “Mr. Kadis tried to downplay the information. But we all know who was the elephant that day in the meeting room” he said and mentioned that AKEL will not allow this unique habitat of our island to be sacrificed for the sake of business interests and petty political pursuits.
The Member of Parliament of DIKO, Christos Orfanidis, in his statements stated that the necessity for more control by the State Chemistry regarding milk powder was emphasized. He also added that reference was made to the need for reforestation through tree planting, while the issue of fires was also discussed. We have emphasized, he said, the need regarding the fishing shelter in Larnaca that not only the dredging is needed, but the extension of the arm, since as he said, every three or four years the state bears the cost of the burden.
Besides, he noted that reference was also made to the fishermen, who are facing a huge problem, in terms of sea bass and lionfish, which have increased in huge numbers in Cyprus. He also stated that the need to support the winegrowers was emphasized and “we had also issued a relevant announcement requesting immediate support for the winegrowers, and not only the wineries, something which it seems that the Ministry has heard and is moving towards the correct resolution of the issue, so that they have sponsorship and the winegrowers”.
The Member of Parliament of ELAM, Sotiris Ioannou, said that the biggest problems facing the farmers of Cyprus are the accuracy of food, fertilizers, electricity and fuel. There are too many announcements, he continued, in the last months of the Ministry of Agriculture regarding subsidies and support of the primary production sector, but today they have not been implemented in their entirety, with the result that our farmers are facing serious problems.
“For us, the primary production of our economy is the backbone of the Cypriot economy and it should be sufficiently supported by the state, so that it survives in the face of these difficult conditions experienced by Cyprus as well as the whole planet,” he concluded.
The Member of Parliament of DIPA-Synergasia, Michalis Giakoumis, stated that the Minister of Agriculture presented the work of the Ministry in detail and we are waiting for the proposals submitted by DIPL-Synergasia to be examined. We propose, he continued, the “farmer's card”, as we believe that this policy will help the agricultural world and give liquidity to all farmers, so that they are consistent with their obligations.
He added that they are focusing their interest on the agricultural world and livestock breeders, so that problems of many years can be solved with the aim of both relieving the sector, but also strengthening the economy through agricultural products. In addition, Mr. Giakoumi noted that the issue of the environmental awareness of the citizens was raised and a proposal was made for the implementation of relevant educational programs both in schools and in workplaces. We expect the Ministry of Agriculture to announce plans for the treatment or incineration of waste, he concluded.
The Deputy of the Environmentalists Movement-Citizens Cooperation, Charalambos Theopeptou, said, among other things, during the during the Commission session that many organizations express complaints about finding places for tree planting. “We have people who want to plant and they don't allow it, neither the Municipalities, nor the Government, the Ministry of the Interior does not accept”, he said.
He made reference to the waste and said that there are many Cypriot products that packed in non-recyclable packaging. The 50% that reach the recyclers, he continued, are not recycled and there should be a campaign to reduce waste. “It is not possible for the halloumi packaging, which many people buy, not to be recycled,” he said. He also stated that the Government should take over animal shelters and not operate only with volunteers.
