Moldova gears up for key EU agriculture talks
The Moldovan Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry is preparing for bilateral meetings with the European Commission in September.
According to Ina Butucel, Deputy Secretary General at the Ministry of Agriculture, these meetings will assess the Republic of Moldova's progress in agriculture and food safety. The screening process for Chapter 11, which focuses on agriculture and rural development, involves presenting the progress made, the reforms still needed in this area, its financing, and the support instruments authorities plan to implement. A specific topic for discussion will be the method for transposing European legislation regarding certain product groups.
Chapter 12 is also dedicated to food safety, as well as sanitary and phytosanitary standards. The European Commission will evaluate the extent to which approximately 1,800 EU acts have been transposed under this chapter. Here, we will need to demonstrate how we're implementing and regulating sanitary and phytosanitary requirements, food safety standards, the readiness of our infrastructure and laboratories for necessary testing and trials, our progress in regulating and protecting plant varieties, and how we're ensuring animal health and welfare, plant health, and other equally important aspects.
A significant aspect of preparing for this screening process is the national establishment of agricultural chambers. According to Ina Butucel, these will ensure greater cohesion within the agricultural sector.
These chambers will function as local organizations that will ensure cohesion among farmers, Local Public Authorities (LPAs), and other important local and regional stakeholders. They will also facilitate farmers' access to funding, especially once we become eligible to benefit from EU funds for the agricultural sector and rural development. The agricultural chambers will assist farmers with organizing their agricultural activities and with meeting the requirements needed to fully benefit from all the support offered by the European Union.
In early June, the Republic of Moldova concluded the screening process for Chapter 13, which covers fisheries and aquaculture, in Brussels. This process evaluated the alignment of national legislation and practices in this domain with those of the European Union.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
