The Portuguese Farmers’ Confederation (CAP) regretted that agriculture was given no importance in the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR), with support “just above zero”, remembering that nothing can be done on the issue now.
“The answer is simple: no importance was attached to agriculture. The support for agriculture from the RDP is not zero, but slightly higher. Therefore, obviously, it could and should be greater, and the Government had such an opportunity,” he noted in an interview with Lusa , CAP President Álvaro Mendonça y Moura, as he celebrates the anniversary of his assumption of the presidency of the confederation.
On 22 September 2023, the European Commission approved the revision of Portugal’s PRR, which now stands at €22,200 million.
However, this amount could be approximately 30,500 million euros if the government decided to exhaust all loans, as the Spanish government did.
For CAP, this was to be an option of the Portuguese government, thereby giving more emphasis to the agricultural sector in the PRR.
The executive will always have to pay off that debt, but “over 30 years and with negligible interest,” allowing for investments in water retention, for example.
The Farmers’ Confederation has already advocated for the creation of a National Water Network, hoping it will be developed over the next four years.
Otherwise, “every two years” we’ll be saying we’re in a drought situation again and need help, he said.
Alvaro Mendonça e Moura also noted that, unlike what happens in North Africa for example, Portugal does not lack water, but the resources are poorly distributed and do not have the ability to store them.
Therefore, it is necessary to begin to retain water, which can be done by building dams, redistributing their use.
On the other hand, he argued, the solution may still lie in renegotiating dam concessions, with some now serving multiple purposes.
However, the country will not be able to invest in this resource at the expense of PRR funds, he warned, emphasizing that the period for using this loan has already closed.
The PRR, which runs until 2026, intends to implement a package of reforms and investments to restore economic growth.
The plan aims to not only reverse the damage caused by Covid-19, but also support investment and job creation.
Among the issues highlighted by the confederation are also funds to be disbursed under the Rural Development Program (RDP) 2020, which should be implemented by the end of next year.
“We don’t have a shortage of money, we have a shortage of projects, and that’s what we have to change,” he said.
Regarding the Strategic Plan for the Common Agricultural Policy (PEPAC), the CAP president explained that it must be “deeply reworked” and not simply de-bureaucratized, as the government of Luis Montenegro has already announced.
“This is a significant change. It’s not just about remodeling, making it simpler and less bureaucratic. That’s actually changing,” he explained.
CAP has submitted a proposal to amend PEPAC, hoping it will be part of what the government will have to submit to Brussels by the end of June so that the new plan can come into force on 1 January 2025.
The farmers’ proposal includes, among other things, greater support for precision agriculture, which is “more advanced and cleaner,” and livestock farming, as well as strengthening the first pillar of the policy, which concerns direct payments.
Emergency // CSJ
Lusa/The End
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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