The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has raised more than $510 million from the private sector and international donors to support Ukrainian agricultural producers over two years as part of the Agricultural Resilience Initiative in Ukraine (AGRI-Ukraine), with the U.S. government contributing another $350 million to the program, the donor organization said.
“AGRI-Ukraine, founded in July 2022, has already helped more than 14 thousand Ukrainian farmers, which is 32% of registered agricultural producers in the country, to obtain the necessary resources, such as seeds, fertilizers, plant protection products, access to storage facilities and financial resources. This made it possible to harvest crops and provide additional income of more than $90 million due to an increase in corn and sunflower production by 430 thousand tons,” the statement said.
When Russia tried to block the export of Ukrainian agricultural products through the Black Sea ports, AGRI-Ukraine helped to prepare alternative export routes, in particular through ports on the Danube River and land border crossings.
Thanks to these measures, 62 million tons of agricultural products were exported, bringing more than $17 billion to the Ukrainian economy, USAID stated.
According to the donor organization, contributions of $510 million provided by the private sector and international donors tripled the original target set by USAID.
“In 2023, AGRI-Ukraine expanded its circle of partners to include 26 Ukrainian agricultural companies, the American seed company Gowan Seed, international financial institutions such as the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and the governments of the Republic of Korea and Japan.
“USAID and its partners remain committed to supporting Ukraine’s agricultural sector and the export of Ukrainian agricultural products, which will help mitigate the global food crisis that is deepening as a result of the war unleashed by Russia,” the donor organization assured.
USAID’s Agricultural and Rural Development Program will provide farmers with free sunflower seeds provided by Lidea Ukraine as part of the AGRI-Ukraine initiative, the donor organization’s press service reported on Facebook.
According to the report, the assistance will be offered to farmers who have previously applied through the State Agrarian Register (SAR) for corn seeds, but did not have enough sowing units of this crop.
The program is open to farmers in Dnipropetrovska, Kyivska, Sumska, Kharkivska and Chernihivska oblasts who cultivate between 5 and 500 hectares. Each farmer will be able to receive up to 40 sowing units of sunflower.
There is no need to submit a new application to the State Register, the organizers will contact those who have applied with the offer, USAID AGRO said.
It is expected that Lidea Ukraine will deliver 2858 sowing units of sunflower seeds to farmers from the regions most affected by the war. The delivery of the seeds will be organized by the All-Ukrainian Association of Communities as part of the United Communities project.
“Thanks to this initiative, farmers in the frontline and de-occupied regions will be able to grow and supply at least 24 thousand tons of sunflower to the market. According to preliminary forecasts, the harvest harvested from the donated seeds will bring farmers about UAH 360 million in revenue, which will help restore agricultural production in war-affected communities,” USAID AGRO said.
As reported, recently, as part of the USAID AGRI-Ukraine initiative, Lidea Ukraine has transferred 3362 sowing units of corn seeds to farmers in frontline communities. The application process was completed ahead of schedule due to high demand.
