Prishtina, 7 December, 2022
The Prime Minister of the Republic of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, participated in the 7th Conference of raspberries in Kosovo “Raspberries – New initiatives for climate change”.
In his speech to the audience, Prime Minister Kurti said that this year we have given the greatest support ever to farmers and farmers and that next year we are adding the highest ever budget for agriculture to this highest ever support. .
“During this year, we have given the greatest support ever to farmers and farmers. In addition to the support of 70 million euros, the subsidy of numerous agricultural crops, among them raspberries – for 25% more than in the previous year, this year we also allocated 3.5 million euros for the development and promotion of Rural Tourism and Agro-Tourism. Meanwhile, according to the budget planning for 2023 that has already passed the first reading, the budget for agriculture is expected to be 87 million euros, while when we include the support from external funds, it is expected that for the first time in Kosovo it will pass the amount of 100 million euros”, said Prime Minister Kurti.
Conferences like this one today, as Prime Minister Kurti said, bring different actors together, from the executive, from academia, from farmers and enable us to address the needs of society and the challenges of our producers as accurately as possible.
In the last 8 years, i.e. from 2014 to 2022, Kosovo has produced close to 29,000 tons of raspberries, worth 65 million euros, almost all of them for export to EU countries, while this year alone, close to 2,600 tons of raspberries with an export value of over 11 million euros or exactly 11 million and 50 euros.
Emphasizing that the case of raspberries is one of the examples of our export potential, the prime minister said that there is no doubt that our country is becoming an export-oriented country.
In the end, he added that the Government is committed to support and implement the best possible standards in the continuous improvement of the environment, the creation of jobs and better working conditions, the increase of exports, the provision of abundant food and safe and improving the revitalization of the agro-rural landscape.
The complete speech of Prime Minister Albin Kurti:
Dear organizers from the National Association “Raspberries of Kosovo”,
Dear chairman Sami Uka and director Kujtim Lepaja,
Dear Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Rural Development, Mr. Demelezi
Dear Director of CARITAS Switzerland in Kosovo, Mr. Gerhard Schaumberger,
Dear participants from the academic community,
Dear Professor Dr. Agim Zajmi,
Dear farmers and operators of the agro-food industry sector, respectively of the small tree sector, of raspberries in particular,
During this year, we have given the greatest support ever to farmers and farmers. In addition to the support of 70 million euros, the subsidy of numerous agricultural crops, among them raspberries – for 25% more than in the previous year, this year we also allocated 3.5 million euros for the development and promotion of Rural Tourism and Agro-Tourism.
To the highest ever support for farmers and ranchers, next year we are adding the highest ever budget for agriculture. According to the budget plans for 2023, which has already passed the first reading, the budget for agriculture is expected to be 87 million euros, while when we include the support from external funds, it is expected that for the first time in Kosovo, it will exceed the amount of 100 million euros. In its framework, the doubling of payments for agricultural yields, the compensation of VAT for agricultural oil and the coverage of expenses for other agricultural inputs are foreseen. All this attention to agriculture is both a result and proof of our prioritization of production and local producers.
Conferences like todays bring different actors together, from the executive, from academia, from farmers and enable us to address the needs of society and the challenges of our producers as accurately as possible.
Exchanges like these today have made it possible for raspberry production in Kosovo to increase from 20 hectares in 2011 to around 1500 hectares in 2022.
In the last 8 years, i.e. from 2014 to 2022, Kosovo has produced close to 29,000 tons of raspberries, worth 65 million euros. Almost all for export to EU countries. This year alone, nearly 2,600 tons of raspberries were produced with an export value of over 11 million euros, or exactly 11 million and 50 euros.
With this production value and quantity, we see a complete functioning of the agro-food chain and the engagement of many actors in the production links. It undoubtedly includes employment and improving the quality of life of thousands of families.
The case of raspberries is one of the examples of our export potential. There is no doubt that our country is becoming an export-oriented country.
Last year, exports were 83.6 percent higher than compared to the previous year, so 2020, this year they are even 29.5 percent higher than in 2021. This growth trend has caused the ratio between export and import of improves from nearly 1:9 in 2019 to less than 1:6 this year. Our expectations are that this trade deficit gap, which we currently have, will be reduced as soon as possible and further. The improvements are big, although gradual, as our goal is for Kosovo, with the help of producers, to transform into an export-oriented economy.
This success of the raspberry sector, in addition to the support with grants and direct payments, is of course also made by the exemplary organization of raspberry farmers, which we encourage to be followed by farmers of other crops.
It always is; satisfaction when our agro-food products, in this case our qualitative raspberries, are part of the tables of many European citizens. But we also have many other products, such as apples, grapes, peppers, potatoes, aromatic medicinal plants, and dairy products that are gaining ground in the markets as “Premium” products.
Of course, in order to face the challenges of the time, it is necessary to invest in the expertise and certification of our products, so that farmers and processors use as much as possible the ideal agro-ecological conditions that prevail in our country, and as much as possible materials and techniques that are compatible and improve the environment.
Dear participants of this conference,
The government is committed to support and implement the best possible standards in the continuous improvement of the environment, the creation of jobs and better working conditions, the growth of exports, the provision of abundant and safe food and the improvement of revitalizing the agro-rural landscape.
Your activity at the same time contributes to the farmers, their families and the whole society slowly but surely creating a new relationship with the land, because a people who work the land is certainly even more connected to it and this has not only effects economic but also social and state effects.
I wish you a good day in exchange of knowledge and experiences. Only in this way can we open new horizons of knowledge and ideas, which will be useful for your orchards, for the sector and for our common goal.
Thank you.
Last modified: December 7, 2022