The agriculture subsidization fund will be increased from 400 million lei to 750 million lei a year towards the completion of the implementation of the Agriculture and Rural Environment Development Strategy for 2014-2020. The draft strategy was presented for public debates, IPN reports.

Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Food Industry Viorel Gutu said in the debates that the rise was calculated based on the projected number of applications for subsidies and the average subsidization rate. The demand for subsidies was determined on the basis of the forecast volume of private investments in agricultural production. The investments are expected to rise from about 3 billion lei a year in 2012 to approximately 4 billion lei in 2020.

Under the draft strategy, the method of distributing subsidies according to the main ten directions included in the subsidization program will also change. The volume of subsidies allocated for supporting investments in agricultural machines and equipment will fall from 42% of the total in 2012 to 16% in 2020. The volume of subsidies intended for supporting post-harvest activities will rise from 11% to 25% in the period, while of subsidies for animal-breeding will increase from 3% to 11%.

The draft Agriculture and Rural Environment Development Strategy for 2014-2020 is based on three priorities: increasing competitiveness of the agrifood sector by modernizing it; ensuring the sustainable management of natural resources, and improving living standards in rural areas. The document was formulated by the Agriculture Ministry with the support of the International Finance Corporation.