INTERVIEW: Alvaro Ortega, Agricultural Attaché to the EU Delegation to Georgia

For three years now, the EU has been supporting Georgia’s agricultural sector through the European Neighborhood Program for Agriculture and Rural Development (ENPARD). The first phase of this program, dubbed ENPARD I, was a EUR 52 million (GEL 135 million) program. From 2016, however, an expansion is in order, as the second phase, ENPARD II, will inject a further EUR 50 million (GEL 130 million) to widen and deepen the agricultural and rural development measures launched under the first phase, adding a further five regions where ENPARD will concentrate its focal activities.

Actively involved in assisting the government in drafting their national development strategy document (the first for a long time now), ENPARD is organizing intensive meeting points, where stakeholders and interested parties can discuss and provide their insights on the oncoming draft.

One such possibility was presented at the media tour organized by ENPARD to Borjomi region, where GEORGIA TODAY was privileged to have an exclusive interview with Alvaro Ortega, Agricultural Attaché to the EU Delegation to Georgia.

“What we are doing together with the government is integrating agriculture into the rural development strategy. Agrotourism, ecotourism, cultural heritage, protection of natural resources- all are integral aspects of this strategy that need careful consideration when incorporated into this new national strategy,” he said when asked about the main challenges in drafting the policy document, which has already entered the final stage of negotiations with the respective ministries and public consultations, and which, “if all goes well, will be adopted before the end of the year.”

The adoption of the strategy will be followed by an action plan, once again, with the priorities of various ministries outlined within.

“Our ambition is to link the needs and priorities of the rural population with the needs and priorities of the public sector and public expenditure,” he explains.

This approach is one that comes at odds with that of the previous government, which, despite facing the reality of 43 percent of Georgians living in rural areas and more than half the workforce deployed in the agricultural/self-employed sector, deemed the sector non-sustainable and entirely dependent on donations, therefore not a priority.

Can the changes initiated by the new government herald change in this regard? “It’s a difficult question, as the reality is that the agriculture is still non-sustainable,” Ortega admits. “But you also need to keep in mind that it has been 3 or 4 years since the government first recognized how important agriculture is. I cannot comment on the stance of the previous leadership, but I can say we agree fully with the current government on its stance with regards agriculture, because, population-wise, employment-wise, it’s a sector that will remain part of the national economy for years to come.”

The key to making agriculture more sustainable lies in making it more competitive, he believes. And how can we transform agriculture into a sector that supports the economy, instead of draining it? “It will be a long process, that much is clear,” is the curt answer, followed by more innuendo: “There are still many problems unsolved, the difficulties with land registration being one. We have a situation when the majority of farmers are small-time enterprisers, and the only way to support them is to give them access to finances. That will create a more competitive environment. Obviously, qualification and expertise are also huge factors. That’s why the EU is so actively engaged in helping the communities to set up cooperatives, as it helps experience-sharing and accumulates a collective expertise.”

Georgians already have access to the European market and have their eyes on value-chain production. Assisting with the establishment of value-chain production seems to be one of the cornerstones of the ENPARD agenda, and Ortega is only too glad to give us full disclosure: “There are several products, like hazelnuts and wine, where Georgia has enough capacity to create sustainable agriculture, within some limits, of course. Value-chain production is simply a means to maximize the potential of agricultural commodities from production sites to market. For example, the hazelnut manufacturers often face the problem of storage; how to conserve their production according to European standards. Building such storage rooms would set in motion value-chain production,” he explains.

As a farewell, when asked just how long he thinks Georgia will have to wait to set its foot firmly on that European market, he is reluctant to provide an answer in numbers, but says that while it will require hard work and dedication from all involved stakeholders, the rewards to be reaped are not that far in the future. One certainly hopes that is the case.

Vazha Tavberidze