Brussels, 17/11/2010 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 16 November, the European Commission announced that it had approved a project in favour of direct aid to Zimbabwean smallholder farmers for a total amount of €7 million to help them stimulate production and overcome barriers to marketing their products.
At least 1 million farmers are expected to benefit from this ad hoc aid in small rural communities in Zimbabwe. The overall goal of this support is to reduce the dependency of vulnerable rural communal households on humanitarian assistance and improve their livelihoods. The Commission has entrusted the FAO with the task of managing the project. Its implementation will be overseen by NGOs, the private sector and the three main agricultural organisations in the country.
This ad hoc aid is part of the EU's short-term strategy for Zimbabwe. Due to the lack of sufficient progress in the implementation of the Global Political Agreement (GPA) on power sharing in this country, development cooperation is still subject to restrictions until 20 February 2011 (EUROPE 10079). (A.N./transl.fl)