The Mojkovac Secretariat for Agriculture, Water Management and Rural Development has canceled the public call for funding for the allocation of pregnant heifers. However, as the secretary of that department told Vijesti, Tatjana Simic, livestock farmers will not be left without this form of support, so a total of about 80 heads for last year and this year will soon be distributed through a new call.
The reason for the cancellation of the previous call, as she explained, was “insufficiently clear criteria for distribution and the inability to make a fair distribution due to the much higher number of requests received compared to the number of animals imported.” Now, the secretary announces, the criteria will be redefined.
"The pregnant heifers that were supposed to be distributed under last year's call are in quarantine, that is, in a barn in Štitarica. There are 31 heads. This year, this type of support has been increased, so 49 heads will be distributed. When it comes to support measures for farmers, this year the focus will be on livestock farming," says Simić.
According to her, special care will be taken when allocating pregnant heifers to animal welfare, so they will be allocated to households where they have good conditions for housing, as well as for nutrition.
The local agricultural budget last year was 150.000, explains the secretary, and this year it has been increased and will amount to 175.000 euros. Modernization and meeting standards in agricultural production were a priority last year. Through support measures, the Municipality helped about 15 households in the adaptation of stables, auxiliary buildings, and also facilities on katuns.
Simić says that livestock farmers were allocated up to 3.000 euros from the budget, or up to half of the amount they needed to finance these works.
"Thanks to this support, some livestock farmers have managed to adapt stables, auxiliary buildings and facilities on katuns. So it was an extremely good measure, which greatly improved the facilities where animals are housed or which are used for other types of agricultural production," says the Secretary for Agriculture, Water Management and Rural Development.
Simić emphasizes the importance of ensuring the competitiveness of domestic production. He also explains that, along with increased subsidy measures, which, he says, have never been greater, we should also take into account mechanisms for controlling the spending of these funds.
He reminds that in the area of the Mojkovac municipality there are many farmers with significant production, but that their work, as well as that of producers from other municipalities, is partly devalued by imports.
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