The government must prepare €200 mln in drought damage payment

Agricultural producers said that the government should set aside over €200 mln, about one tenth of the Ministry of Agriculture’s budget for 2009, to cover damages for calamities caused by the drought this year, considering that the phenomenon affected more than one million hectares of land.

The representatives of farmers said they will meet officials of the Ministries of Agriculture and Finance towards the end of this week, when they could make a decision about resolving this situation.


Viorel Matei, President of the National Federation of Agricultural Producers in Romania (FNPAR), said that damage compensation could reach farmers in the fourth quarter, as was the case in previous years, provided they are insured. At present, about 60 percent of the worked surface is insured, Matei said.

On the other hand, Mihai George Leca, Chief Executive Officer of the League of Associations of Agricultural Producers in Romania (LAPAR), said that the surface affected by drought exceeds two million hectares, in degrees from 30 to 100 percent, and only 45 percent of these are insured.

Minister of Agriculture Ilie Sarbu said in July that the drought affected as much as 50 percent of the crops in some regions, but avoided giving exact figures, “in order not to influence the market.” The effect will most likely reflect in gross domestic product, and agriculture’s contribution may drop from 6.4 percent in 2008. (Business Standard)