Brussels, 26/05/2015 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 26 May, the European Commission approved 24 additional rural development programmes aiming to improve the competitiveness of the agricultural sector of the Union, care for the countryside and climate and strengthen the economic and social fabric of rural communities in the period up to 2020.
The programmes adopted are expected to create more than 40,000 jobs in rural areas and around 700 training places. The aim is to foster innovation, knowledge transfer, more sustainable farming practices and stronger rural businesses. Funding worth €27 billion from the EU budget, plus public financing at national/regional level and/or private funds, is being made available.
The priority actions of the regional and national programmes adopted include the modernisation of holdings, support to young farmers, sustainable land management and improving broadband infrastructure. The member states concerned are Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Romania, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom.
In total, there will be 118 programmes across the 28 member states. The EU funding stands at €99.6 billion for the period 2014-20 under the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) and is topped up by national, regional and private funding. The new programmes bring the number of rural development programmes approved to 51, with a total envelope of €62 billion (or 62.4% of the budget).
The 24 programmes approved on Tuesday are as follows:
Bulgaria (€2.3 billion for the period 2014-2020, or 2.38% of the total budget, Croatia (€2 billion, 2.04%), the Czech Republic (€2.3 billion, 2.32%), Germany - Baden-Württemberg (€709.6 million, 0.71%), Germany - Berlin and Brandenburg (€1 billion, 1.06%), Germany - Lower Saxony and Bremen (€1.1 billion, 1.13%), Germany - Rhineland-Palatinate (€299.8 million, 0.30%), Germany - Saarland (€33.6 million, 0.03%), Germany - Schleswig-Holstein (€419.5 million, 0.42%), Germany - Thuringia (€679.7 million, 0.68%), Ireland (€2.2 billion, 2.20%), Italy - National Rural Network (€59.7 million, 0.06%), Italy- Bolzano (€158 million, 0.16%), Italy - Emilia Romagna (€513 million, 0.52%), Italy - Tuscany (€414.7 million, 0.42%), Italy - Veneto (€510.7 million, 0.51%), Romania (€8.1 billion, 8.18%), Spain - National Programme (€237.8 million, 0.24%), Spain -Aragon (€467 million, 0.47%), Spain - La Rioja (€70 million, 0.07%), Spain - Pais Vasco (€87.1 million, 0.09%), Sweden (€1.7 billion, 1.78%), United Kingdom - Scotland (€844.7 million, 0.85%) and United Kingdom - Wales (€655.8 million, 0.66%). (Lionel Changeur)