AgroInvest Quarterly Report October - December 2012

The project's objective is to support a stable, market-oriented agricultural policy environment, stimulate access to financial services for small and medium producers, and facilitate a more effective market infrastructure for these producers. The project's scope of work identifies three main components, refined into six tasks. Component 1 focuses on supporting a stable, market-oriented policy environment, with tasks including accelerating market-oriented reforms, strengthening industry associations, and providing public education for land rights. Component 2 aims to stimulate access to finance, with a task focused on sustainable access to financial services for small and medium producers. Component 3 facilitates market infrastructure for small and medium producers, with tasks including producer organization development and developing wholesale markets and other market infrastructure. In October-December 2012, the AgroInvest project team continued technical implementation activities in the project focus areas. Key activities and accomplishments during this period included finalizing and submitting Land Governance Assessment Framework (LGAF) reports to the World Bank for review, announcing a competition for the second round of grants to industry associations, and scaling up the Legal Land Rights Services Program to help citizens understand and protect their land rights. The project also launched the Land Rights Public Education and Outreach Campaign and completed the field phase of the Baseline Survey on Land Rights Awareness, Small- and Medium-scale Agricultural Producers Access to Finance, and Agricultural Market Infrastructure. Additionally, the project developed the comprehensive "Market Survey on the Current Status of Agrilending in Ukraine" and presented the Market Survey results to AgroInvest partner banks. The project also completed a multi-session training program on agrilending for credit union specialists and developed a number of instruments to enhance the quality of lending to small and medium producers by credit unions. Furthermore, the project presented the Owner-Financing Mechanism to two leading Ukrainian banks and received their commitment to implement the mechanism when the moratorium on the sale of agricultural land is lifted. The project also contributed to the adoption of law #10068 "On Amendments to the Tax Code of Ukraine (stimulation of the development of agriculture cooperation)" and law #11221 "On amending the Law of Ukraine 'On Agriculture Cooperation'". The project also executed an analysis of, and proposed recommendations to, the draft guidelines on accounting operations of agriculture servicing cooperatives and completed feasibility studies for the development of wholesale agriculture markets in Rivne oblast, Kherson oblast, and the Crimea. The project's technical implementation activities are focused on supporting a stable, market-oriented policy environment, stimulating access to finance, and facilitating market infrastructure for small and medium producers. The project's accomplishments and progress to date demonstrate its commitment to achieving its objectives and contributing to Ukraine's economic recovery and food security efforts.