How can the European Union support agriculture and rural development in its closest neighbor countries?
That’s what the European Commission intends to discuss with international cooperation and agriculture ministers from countries in the Middle East, North Africa and Eastern Europe in a May 31 to June 1 workshop in Brussels, Belgium.
During the workshop, the visiting ministers will be briefed about the European Neighborhood Program for Agriculture & Rural Development, which was part of the revised neighborhood aid policy instrument the bloc adopted last year.
Through the conference, the European Union aims to encourage its partner countries to make agriculture and rural development one of three priority sectors for cooperation with the bloc. The European Union plans to limit its support for each partner country to three sectors as part of its new development agenda.
“With this conference, the European Commission sends a very clear signal of our willingness to put agriculture at the heart of our relationship with our neighbors and friends south and east,” EU Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development Dacian Cioloş said. “Concretely, we are ready to share our experience, our know-how, in the framework of a solid partnership for rural development.”
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