Tengiz Nasaridze, the Deputy Minister of environment protection and agriculture of Georgia has called on all stakeholders to ensure proper pasture management. According to him this will also make farmers’ incomes more stable in the near future.
The minister’s specific remarks were: Correct management of pastures will ensure the increase of farmers’ incomes. The Deputy Minister of Environment Protection and Agriculture, Tengiz Nasaridze expressed his views during a summary meeting of the first pilot project of inventorying pastures and planning at the municipal level in Akhaltsikhe municipality.
He also expressed happiness about the introduction of proper pasture management models. He added, The country is starting active reforms in pasture management across the country. Moreover first of all a legislative framework will be developed. A systemic type of transformation in the direction of pastures will take place to make the management of pastures more sustainable and effective through decentralization.”
According to the minister, the care and proper management of pastures will contribute to their long-term productive use and, ultimately, ensure the growth of the farmer’s income.
It is worth mentioning that, as part of the project, pasture management plans were prepared for 15 selected villages of Akhaltsikhe municipality. The Government and its various agencies will now, under this new project, contribute to the sustainable and long-term development of different livestock management models.
At the same time based on the results and experience obtained, a technical manual was developed to simplify the identification, categorization, zoning, and determination of pasture users in other regions and municipalities across Georgia.
The Regional Environmental Center of the Caucasus (REC Caucasus) is developing Akhaltsikhe’s pilot project within the Milk Industry Modernization and Market Access (DiMMA) Program framework.
The funding for the actual and effective implementation of the project is being funded by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). The Minister also announced that pasture management should be made a priority by the government.
