More farmers from Moldova to benefit from emergency assistance

Chisinau, 13 February /MOLDPRES/ - As many as 622 rural communities of Moldova in next spring will receive essential agricultural resources, such as sets of seeds for vegetables, tubers of potatoes for seeds and fodder for cattle.  

And this after the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in Moldova, in cooperation with the Austrian Development Association (ADA), the operational unit of the Austrian Development Cooperation, the government of Japan and the government of Switzerland have initiated a new stage of emergency agricultural assistance for the small farmers and vulnerable rural households who face the effects of the 2022 drought and of the crisis from the region.    

The resources, evaluated at about one million dollars, are financed by two projects implemented by FAO: the joint initiative of FAO and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Emergency support for agricultural producers in the context of the social, economic and energy crisis, financed by ADA and the government of Switzerland through the UN Fund, Partnership for Sustainable Development Goals Moldova 2023; the FAO Project, Emergency support for backing the agricultural production and the protection of the food and nutritional security of the extremely vulnerable farms hit by the conflict from Ukraine and the drought, financed by the government of Japan.         

The assistance will reach 12,000 vulnerable beneficiaries who need emergency support. Thus, sets of vegetable seeds will be distributed in eight districts: Soroca, Hancesti, Orhei, Cantemir, Rascani, Floresti, Edinet and Drochia. Potatoes tubers will be distributed in five districts: Orhei, Cantemir, Stefan Voda, Edinet and Rascani and four districts will receive fodder for animals: Cimislia, Falesti, Stefan Voda and Soldanesti.     

The sets of vegetables seeds will be distributed in February, at the beginning of the planting season. Planned for cultivation at the small scale, each set of seeds covers the production of vegetable in greenhouses with areas from 50 and 1,000 square metres and includes a selection of tomatoes and cucumbers seeds, fertilizers, etc. Additionally, almost 8,000 farms will receive 50 kg of tubers of potatoes for seeds each, - which is enough to cover an area of 200 square metres.    

Since the initiation of FAO’s Emergency Response Plan in 2023, in cooperation with ADA, Switzerland and Japan, substantial assistance has been provided to rural communities from Moldova, and namely to the families and farms who face economic difficulties and the adverse effects of the climate changes. As many as 2,830 families from 120 settlements from the districts of Causeni, Basarabeasca, Cahul, Cantemir and Leova received fodder for cattle. Each family received between 350 and 375 kg of fodder, which is essential for resilience before the  existing scarcity of food. The programme facilitated also the distribution of 30 tons of maize seeds and 60 tons of fertilizers to more than 1,200 small farmers from three districts, Calarasi, Rascani and Cantemir.