The agro-budget of Montenegro for 2025 amounts to 77.063.945 euros, which is about two million euros more than last year's, and it plans more money for direct payments in crop production, the wine sector, the construction of rural roads and wells, the purchase of machinery, old-age benefits, benefits for pregnant heifers due to the consequences of Q fever...
Less money this year will go towards free distribution of fruit, vegetables and milk to schools, support for cooperatives, associations and producer organisations, sustainable management of freshwater fisheries, and food and feed safety measures.
This year, 56,54 million euros will be allocated from the state treasury for the Agrobudget, while 11,02 million euros will be provided through donations, as well as 9,5 million euros from loans. Thus, 53,85 million euros will be paid from the state budget for the development of agriculture, rural development and fisheries, 2,09 million for animal health protection measures, 385,5 thousand for the implementation of food safety measures, and 201,6 thousand euros for the implementation of phytosanitary measures.
Last year, the structure of the Agrobudget consisted of 51,35 million from the state treasury, 15,55 million from donations, and 8,15 million from loans.
Donations this year are 4,5 million euros less than last year, and are mostly financed from the IPARD III program, with 10,94 million, while 82,64 thousand came from the GORA project. In 2024, the state received most of the money from the IPARD II program, which officially ended at the beginning of this year.
The loans provided 1,3 million euros more than last year, and the entire amount of 9,5 million comes from the Second Project for Institutional Development and Strengthening of Agriculture in Montenegro (MIDAS 2). The largest part of this money, namely 1,5 million euros, is planned for the establishment of regional offices of the Payment Directorate (House of Agriculture) in Pljevlja and Berane.
From the Agrobudget for direct payments covering livestock production, support for the development of market milk production, milk processing on the farm, payments in plant production and for young farmers will be paid 19,46 million euros, or 1,31 million euros more than last year. For total rural development measures, 30,47 million euros will be allocated this year, including support for investments in primary plant production, establishment and maintenance of mother plantations, achieving animal welfare standards in livestock farming, rural development and adaptation of mountain katuns. For these measures, 2,82 million euros less than last year have been planned.
The Government adopted the Agrobudget at its session at the end of March, and it establishes the conditions, manner and dynamics of implementing agricultural policy measures for market price policy, rural development, affairs of public interest, social benefits, measures for food safety, veterinary, phytosanitary affairs, and fisheries.
Old-age benefits are only increasing
Old-age benefits will once again occupy a significant place in the Agrobudget this year, and 1,57 million more, or 14,2 million euros, will be allocated for them. There are about 3,4 thousand of these beneficiaries, and the amount of the benefit per person is 315 euros, while their number has increased by 2021 percent since 11. The head of an agricultural household is entitled to old-age benefits if he is over 65 years old (for men), or 60 years old (for women), lives in the countryside, is engaged in agriculture and does not receive income from any other source.
The spending structure shows that money is increasingly being directed directly to producers, through production-based payments, while investment measures within rural development will gain a slight boost.
This year, there was also a growth of 1,31 million euros in total direct payments, i.e. 19,46 million euros are allocated instead of last year's 18,14 million euros. A significant increase among direct payments was received by crop production, for which 5,1 million euros are now allocated instead of last year's 3,8 million euros.
Within this measure, farmers will still receive 100 euros less per hectare for establishing arable land on previously unused agricultural land, as the subsidy is now 300 euros instead of the previous 400 euros, but the requirement for planting area has been reduced in parallel and amounts to 3.000 instead of 5.000 square meters. Subsidies for production and service provision amount to 16,13 million euros and are slightly higher than the previous 16,1 million.
Double the amount of money is planned to support the wine sector, which will receive 200.000 euros this year. Previously, this measure could provide support of up to 50 percent of eligible costs, up to a maximum of 10.000 euros, while the same amount can now be obtained in a range of support from 50 to 80 percent. A new measure for investments in processing and innovation has also been included. 15.000 euros are planned for the certification of the geographical origin of wine, or three times more than last year.
Around 450.000 euros more, or 1,4 million euros, has been allocated to support the purchase of purebred breeding animals. Some of the conditions have also been changed, so support will also be provided for the purchase of pregnant heifers for farms that have suffered damage due to Q fever. 200.000 euros of this measure has been allocated for female piglets.
One million euros have been set aside for support in the procurement of machinery, attachments and equipment for primary production. Part of that money, 400.000 euros, will be allocated for the procurement of tractors, which is more than this entire measure last year, when 300.000 euros were allocated for the procurement of machinery. More money has been allocated to support the construction of wells and clarifiers, 190 thousand euros, compared to 2024. Around 55 thousand euros more will also go to support organic production.
Significantly more money is planned for those who take their livestock to the pastures for at least three months a year. 480.000 euros have been allocated for these premiums, while last year this amount was 50.000 euros. A significant part of the money is also going to the development of villages and the construction of infrastructure due to the poor condition of local roads, water and electricity, i.e. 3,47 million euros, which is 330.000 euros more than last year. 1,27 million is intended for the improvement of livestock farming, which is about a third more than last year, when XNUMX million was allocated. The main reason for the increase is more money earmarked for poultry premiums.
The planned amount for certification of geographical origin of wine is 15.000 euros, or three times more than last year. A measure for the protection of the name of the label has now been introduced, amounting to up to five thousand euros, while support for certification of geographical origin has been increased, and can be from 250 to 1.000 euros.
For young people and beekeepers alike
Support for young farmers is planned in the same amount, and production-related payments in crop production, milk... have remained at the same level.
The same amount of money has been prepared for beekeeping as in 2024, namely 400.000 euros, but the criteria for the procurement of beekeeping containers and transport trailers have been lowered, so now those who have at least 12 hives can apply, instead of the previous 20. This year, the state is also allocating 100.000 euros less for the program of free distribution of fruit, vegetables, milk and dairy products to schools. Last year, 300.000 euros were allocated for this measure, while 200.000 euros are planned now.
This year, 80.000 euros are also planned to support cooperatives, associations and producer organizations, which is 10.000 euros less than last year. In 2024, most of the money went to help establish organizations, while now half will go to those purposes and half to education.
Less money, i.e. 65.000 euros, has been set aside for sustainable management of freshwater fisheries, while around 300 thousand euros more will be invested in total. In addition, around 15.000 euros less will go to food and feed safety measures, while 100.000 less is planned for the mandatory animal health protection program. The Ministry of Agriculture will receive 2 million euros this year, or 12 million less than last year, through MIDAS 3,6 to support the fulfillment of the benchmarks for the closure of Chapter 1,7 (Food Safety, Veterinary and Phytosanitary Policy).
The shift was more significant last year
The agricultural budget for 2024 was increased by 12 percent compared to the 2023 budget, and almost nine million euros more were provided through it.
Fees for young farmers, i.e. those under 40 who started or took over a farm, were significantly increased, increasing from 70 to 200 euros per hectare of land.
Support for those who process raw milk on their farms was also increased, and that sector received 2,5 million euros more than in 2023. There were also increases in payments for fruit, vegetables, cereals and potatoes, as well as olive oil, from 100 to 200 euros per hectare.
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