untitled design

Lebanon: The government has secured money for raisin growers

The decision of the government to support the raisin producers is a given and for this purpose it has secured the necessary resources to cover the producers affected by the successive crises, stressed the Minister of Rural Development and Food Mr. Spilios Libanos, answering his question. SYRIZA Mr. Alexis Haritsis.

The government believes in this emblematic product, Mr. Libanos stressed and for this reason, despite the suggestions of many, the Ministry of Regional Development maintained the tied aid in raisins for the new programming period, said Mr. Libanos.

As Mr. Libanos explained, the issue with raisins is confused because there is stock in the Union of Aegio. The state does not have the ability to absorb the stock from Panagialio.

The producers of Corinthian raisins have received € 10,058,297 million in repayable advances, while the processing companies have also received aid of € 3,073,343.23.

At the same time, OPEKEPE accepted the request to extend the delivery deadline for receiving the coupled aid for producers until 28.01.2022 and for processors until 18.02.2022.

The PES in particular, has received:

– € 350,000 as a refundable deposit.

– 386,292.78 as interest subsidy

While through the guarantee fund he has concluded a loan of 7.5 million euros.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development explained that the European Commission, despite its repeated requests, which it referred to at length, has a negative position and does not allow the withdrawal of raisin stocks. “So there is no possibility of withdrawal. The EU does not allow us to do so.”

The Commission, as Mr. Libanos said, proposes the utilization of the three-year program for the distribution of fruits, milk and vegetables in schools for the absorption of raisin stocks. However, this program can not be implemented, because the announcements for the implementation of the program have been issued, some are already in the Court of Auditors for pre-contractual control, and any reversal with the addition of a new product would jeopardize the entire program. So this is not a solution we can implement.

“We are next to the problem,” said Mr. Libanos.

As Mr. Libanos said on Thursday (16/12), he has invited all the Producers’ Associations and Groups to a meeting at the Ministry in order to formulate proposals in order to find the best solution for the utilization of the money that the government has secured for the raisin producers.

.

Source From: Capital

You may also like

Get the latest

Stay Informed: Get the Latest Updates and Insights

 

Most popular