Presentation of the new agricultural project of the American and the Swedish Government in BiH (USAID SIDA FARMA II Project)

Sarajevo, 08 March 2016 - Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations BiH Mirko Šarović, today at the press conference, made official the launching of „FARMA II“, a new five-year project worth over 16 million dollars.

 

High-level delegation of the USAID from Washington: Assistant Administrator of USAID for Europe and Eurasia Thomas Melia, Mission Director of USAID/BiH Peter Duffy, Director of the Swedish International Development Agency for BiH Marie Bergström and the Director of "Milkos" Adin Fakić, attended the project presentation ceremony.

 

USAID/SIDA FARMA II Project is a five-year program in the amount of 16.3 million US dollars, and is of a great importance for BiH, especially because it is aimed at the most sensitive sector at the moment. Projects, such as this one, which are focused on support towards agriculture, are essential for producers and exporters of agricultural products. Support towards agriculture is what this project is focused on, with special emphasis on the export of products of animal origin, area in which BiH currently faces many challenges.

 

USAID (United States Agency for International Development) and SIDA (Swedish International Development Agency) through this project, as they have already done so far, will continue supporting public and private sector in BiH in the process of harmonization of regulations and achieving standards for the export of products of animal origin from BiH to EU countries.

Minister Šarović emphasized that, thanks to these projects, BiH is more prosperous and better, and through them it was able to export milk to EU countries.

 

In the past six years USAID/SIDA FARMA Project, in cooperation with the Veterinary Office of BiH, has provided financial and technical support to milk producers in fulfilling requirements to export to the European Union, strengthening veterinary inspections (border and entity), as well as in the process of preparing and implementing National program for monitoring residues in products of animal origin.

Support was given to producers and the institutions for the preparation for the visit of the EU FVO, and the preparation of the Action Plan that followed, as well as for the work of the Working Group for drafting the BiH Veterinary Law.