The Cabinet of Ministers has amended the procedure for providing grants for the establishment of horticulture, berry and viticulture, as well as the development of greenhouse farming, which are aimed at the recovery of the grape and wine industry, the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food reported.
“Viticulture is a key industry that is now in stagnation. Therefore, realizing these conditions, we have updated the grant procedure. The changes will help winemakers integrate into the grape vertical. They will be able to use the grants to plant their own vineyards. We have also eliminated the mandatory requirement to install irrigation systems and water intake for grapes,” – commented on the Government Resolution No. 871 adopted by the Acting Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food Taras Vysotskyi.
According to his information, the order of granting grants for the establishment of horticulture, berry growing and viticulture presents an expanded list of regions for growing stone fruit species. The total area for planting peach, apricot, sea buckthorn, raspberry, currant, gooseberry, blackberry, currant has been increased at the expense of reducing the total area of planting under pigeonpea and blueberry. The document also clarifies the period during which a garden grant recipient is required to create an appropriate number of seasonal jobs. In addition, the requirement to install an irrigation system and water intake for grapes has been eliminated.
The decree expands the range of potential recipients of grants for orchards and greenhouses. They can be agrarians who are located and carry out economic activities in the territories of active hostilities, where the state electronic information resources are functioning, produce (without adding alcohol) and / or sale of wine grapes, fruit and berry, honey drinks.
The decree shall come into force from the date of its publication.
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OTP Bank intends to become a hub for the distribution of grants from international financial partners and access to preferential lending programs for business. This was stated by Volodymyr Mudryi, Chairman of the Board of OTP Bank, at the conference “Finance for Business in Time of War” organized by the European Business Association and the Independent Association of Banks of Ukraine with the support of international donors – the USAID Project “Investing for Business Resilience” and the IFC Project “Asset Based Finance”, implemented in partnership with the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs of Switzerland (SECO).
“OTP Bank plans to become a hub for international grants for business, remaining a reliable partner for international financial institutions that play a crucial role in the resumption of lending. USAID, IFC, and EBRD have enormous capabilities and significant capacity. And we need to tell entrepreneurs about this as much as possible,” said Mr. Mudryi.
During the conference, V. Mudry called on the banking sector, international partners and the state to engage in an active dialogue on the implementation of joint projects to revive lending.
“If you look at the statistics, since July 2023, the loan portfolio of banks has been constantly growing. But we also know that a huge part of this growth is provided by government programs of subsidized loans “5-7-9%,” the banker emphasized.
In his opinion, the macro stability ensured by the NBU, the predictability of the exchange rate, inflation, GDP growth and bank liquidity encourage us to move to a new stage of cooperation for the development of the economy. “Our goal is to work out new approaches to further development of lending, financing and co-financing of entrepreneurs. And we cannot do it without direct dialog with business,” summarized V. Mudryi.
As a reminder, OTP Bank is already implementing a number of projects with international organizations. In particular, a grant program with the U.S. Agency for International Development USAID, under which it provides targeted financing to small and medium-sized businesses to replenish working capital. It also offers investment loans to SMEs with a possibility of reimbursement of up to 20% of the funds received under the program with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). OTP Bank cooperates with the International Finance Corporation IFC under the Risk Sharing Program agreement to provide financial support to enterprises in key sectors of the Ukrainian economy, especially in the agricultural sector and women-owned businesses.
The Cabinet of Ministers has amended the procedure for granting grants for the creation and development of horticulture, berry growing, viticulture, and greenhouse development.
According to Taras Melnychuk, a representative of the Cabinet of Ministers in the Verkhovna Rada, on Telegram, the decision was made at a government meeting on Friday.
According to the report, the changes improve the mechanisms for supporting business entities operating in the relevant industries.
It is expected that the grant recipient will create jobs and employ full-time employees and pay them the mandatory minimum wage for such specialists.
In addition, the list of conditions for canceling decisions of the Ministry of Agrarian Policy has been expanded, in particular, in case the recipient unilaterally closes its bank account and in case of violation in the transfer of its entire share of co-financing within 30 days after the conclusion of the agreement.
The Cabinet of Ministers has clarified the number of employees required to provide grants for the establishment or development of greenhouse facilities and shortened the list of regions for almond planting.
More and more entrepreneurs and organizations are turning to grant programs in the hope of obtaining financial support for their projects. However, many of them make typical mistakes even at the stage of submitting and implementing an application, which can lead to undesirable consequences. In this regard, Kyiv Analytical Center “Experts Club” together with the founder of “Granta” company and grant projects implementation expert Olga Shaverina, launched a series of YouTube videos, dedicated to the peculiarities of grant financing. In the first video Olga Shaverina shared her experience and told about the most common mistakes made by beginner grantees, as well as gave recommendations on how to avoid them.
The first mistake many people make is not trusting grantmaking tools. Some entrepreneurs do not realize the opportunities that grants provide and miss the chance to get funding for their projects. Lack of information about grant programs and lack of knowledge about procedures can cause missed opportunities.
The second mistake, according to the expert, has to do with not accepting the fact that business is part of society. Many entrepreneurs forget that grant programs are usually aimed at solving social problems or supporting certain social initiatives. Emphasizing the social importance of their project can help in attracting the attention of grantmakers.
The third mistake is neglecting procedures. This is a critical component of successful grantmaking, where proper paperwork and adherence to grant program requirements are critical to your success. Negligence in this matter can cause the application to be rejected.
“Reassign the preparation of the grant application to your secretary on the principle of “He/She can do it! ” because he/she knows how to do the paperwork is the most common mistake among applicants. Most projects fail exactly on this basis,” says Olga Shaverina.
The fourth mistake entrepreneurs often make is underestimating the cost of training. First of all it is a question of labor inputs, because preparation of the grant application demands time, efforts and resources. Some entrepreneurs underestimate the amount of work required to prepare a quality application. Developing a detailed budget, creating a project plan, and analyzing the market and competitors all require careful preparation and research. The lack of a detailed plan and an incomplete understanding of the necessary resources can lead to project failure.
Finally, a fifth mistake worth noting is misunderstanding partnerships and consultant selection. Working in partnership with other organizations or consultants can greatly improve the chances of a successful grant project. However, choosing partners incorrectly or not understanding their role and contribution to the project can lead to conflicts and ineffective work. The criteria for selecting partners and consultants must be clearly defined and meet the goals and needs of the project.
Ms. Shaverina also emphasized the importance of a proper understanding of reporting. Many entrepreneurs underestimate the importance of reporting and do not pay adequate attention to it. Failure to comply with reporting requirements may result in penalties or loss of funding. Therefore, it is necessary to carefully study the reporting requirements and provide all the necessary documents in a timely manner.
Maxim Urakin, founder of the Club of Experts, in turn, shared statistics on grant assistance to Ukraine for the years 2022-2023. Thus, he noted that in 2022 international aid to Ukraine amounted to more than $32 billion, including 18 billion in grant support.
“This year Ukraine has already received about $19 billion in assistance, of which $11 billion was received in January-March, of which $3.7 billion came in the form of grants. That is why grant assistance, including those for specific projects, is extremely important for our economy under current conditions,” said Maxim Uralkin.
So, grant programs are an important tool for business development and implementation of social initiatives. However, in order to receive grant support successfully, it is necessary to avoid common mistakes, which the experts told us about. Compliance with requirements and procedures, understanding the importance of the social aspect of the project, choosing the right partners and consultants, as well as consciously estimating costs and preparing for reporting are all factors that can increase the chances of success.
You can learn more about the mistakes you make when submitting a grant proposal by watching the video on the Club of Experts YouTube channel:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8F7qjrSoWac
Subscribe to the channel at:
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Ukraine’s state budget on Thursday received $1.215 billion in grant funds through the World Bank’s Multi-Donor Trust Fund: $1.2 billion from the U.S. and ;15 million from Finland.
“The grant funds are provided as part of the fifth additional funding under the project Supporting Public Expenditures for Sustainable Public Administration in Ukraine (PEACE in Ukraine). The purpose of the project is to partially compensate state budget expenditures, including social and humanitarian, not related to the sphere of security and defense,” the Ministry of Finance said on Thursday.
It specified that the attracted grant financing will be used for remuneration of state bodies’ employees and teaching staff, pension payments, as well as payments under certain programs of state social assistance (IDPs, people with disabilities, low-income families and payments of housing and communal subsidies).
The Finance Ministry added that in cooperation with Deloitte Consulting, which implements the USAID SOERA project, it is monitoring the use of direct budget support from the US government, and with PriceWaterhouseCoopers Ukraine, an auditing company, is reviewing the agreed procedures in order to determine the eligible state expenditures made by Ukraine in 2022.
It is indicated that the size of the PEACE in Ukraine program reached $16.5 billion and EUR1.4 billion (IBRD loans, MIGA loans, grants of the Multi-Donor Trust Fund).
The Cabinet of Ministers has added rose hips and almonds to the list of fruit and berry crops for planting which one can receive a grant under the state program to establish or develop horticulture, viticulture and berry growing.
According to the representative of the Cabinet of Ministers in the Verkhovna Rada Taras Melnychuk in Telegram, the relevant changes were made to the Cabinet of Ministers resolution No. 738 “Some issues of grants for businesses” at a government meeting on Tuesday.
According to Melnychuk, a separate list of areas for planting has been established for almonds.
According to the decree, the enterprise that has received the grant must prove the creation of new jobs with copies of documents submitted to the State Tax Service. In particular, it is necessary to provide a copy of the tax calculation of the amounts of income accrued (paid) in favor of taxpayers-individuals, the amounts of tax withheld from them, as well as the amounts of accrued single fee for recent reporting periods.
In addition, the government has identified a list of taxes and fees for monitoring and fixing the refund used by the business entity.
As reported, since the beginning of the year as of May 19, 61 agro-enterprises received 201 million UAH for the development of horticulture, berry-growing, viticulture and greenhouse farming within the framework of the profile government grant.
