Georgian Agriculture Minister Otar Shamugia stated on Monday, March 21, that the Georgian farmers will be able to obtain low-interest loans for the production of annual crops following the latest revisions to the preferential agro-credit state programme.
The Georgian Government will subsidise 9% of the loans, with farmers to be able to finance the cash resources needed for their working capital such as seed materials, equipment rental and fuel.
Based on the Government’s decision, the Agriculture Minister said the interest rate for the loans would not exceed 18%.
The Minister stated, ” Under this project, we will subsidise at least half of the interest rate. We believe that this will considerably contribute to our farmers’ access to low-cost monetary resources for the production of annual crops in the nation.”
Moreover, Shamugia also stated that the state would co-finance 80% of the costs of setting up vegetable storage farms for agricultural cooperatives.
He further explained, ” Farmers can join together to form a cooperative, and if they meet the requirements outlined in a specific government decree, they will get co-financing from the state for vegetable storage farms in the form of a grant of 80 per cent of the total cost.”
According to the Minister, a total of 4.5 billion GEL ($1.3 billion/€1.2 billion) has been invested in Georgia’s agricultural growth in recent years.
