Ukraine prepares 5-year agricultural sector development strategy

The press office said the document has been worked out in collaboration with the experts of the European Union, the World Bank, EBRD, USAID and FAO. The strategy envisages eight main directions of development, in particular: the implementation of regulations and establishment of a free trade area with the EU, deregulation in the agricultural sector, development of agricultural science and agricultural production, agricultural market management, state support for the agricultural industry, rural development and resource management in rural areas.

It is reported that the Ministry of Agrarian Policy intends to conduct a broad discussion of strategy in the next four weeks and to present the first draft of the document for consideration of the government and parliament.

Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food Oleksiy Pavlenko said that Ukraine has developed several development programs under the government’s Strategy 2020 program.

According to Pavlenko, the strategy will help outline policy on a wide range of issues, including the development of a land market and farming and rural development according to the standards of the European Union. In addition, the minister stressed that the strategy will include the implementation of a number of investment projects aimed at enhancing Ukraine’s agricultural potential.

"We plan to increase grain production to 100 million tonnes by 2020 and double grain exports," the minister said, adding that the ministry has also set similar ambitious goals in other sectors of agricultural production.

According to the estimates of the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade, grain export in 2014/2015 marketing year will amount to 37.8 million tonnes compared to 32.4 million tonnes exported by the country in the previous marketing year. In 2014 the harvest was at a record level for independent Ukraine of 63 million tonnes.