The Financier of Studies and Projects (Finep) announced this Tuesday (16) an investment package of R$74.9 million to strengthen family farming in Brazil. The measures include a notice for the development of low-cost agricultural machinery and two institutional partnerships focused on applied research and access to credit through cooperatives.
The resources are non-refundable and come from the National Fund for Scientific and Technological Development (FNDCT).
The main axis of the package is a R$60 million notice for the formation of a consortium of companies that will develop a small tractor, between 15 and 18 horsepower, in addition to at least six compatible agricultural implements. The proposal is to create a technologically advanced solution, with low final cost and national production.
The notice provides additional points for projects involving cooperatives, Scientific and Technological Institutions (ICTs) and investments in the North, Northeast and Central-West regions.
The announcements were made during the first meeting of the Mais Alimentos Program Advisory Board. The event was attended by the Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Luciana Santos; the Minister of Agrarian Development and Family Farming, Paulo Teixeira; the executive secretary of the Ministry of Development, Industry, Commerce and Services, Marcio Elias Rosa; and the president of Finep, Luiz Antônio Elias.
According to the president of Finep, Luiz Antônio Elias, the initiative reinforces the role of innovation in increasing productivity and strengthening small farmers. “It is a demonstration of the ability to induce innovation to reach the cutting edge and improve productivity,” he stated.
Research and credit
Another announcement was the R$14.9 million partnership with the Institute for Rural Research and Education (Ipê-Campo), which will structure a national research network focused on the development of agricultural machinery and bio-inputs adapted to regional realities. According to the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, the initiative meets a historic demand from social movements and seeks to expand the national scientific base in the sector.
The third front is a Technical Cooperation Agreement with the National Union of Solidarity Cooperative Organizations (Unicopas), which represents around 800 thousand families. The objective is to facilitate cooperatives’ access to Finep’s financing lines, a possibility opened after the modernization of the FNDCT Law, which now allows cooperatives to benefit directly from the fund’s resources.
For minister Luciana Santos, the announcements show how science and technology policy can dialogue with social and productive policies. Minister Paulo Teixeira highlighted that the package represents a “paradigm change” in family farming, by promoting mechanization, reducing the hardship of work in the field and making the activity more attractive for young people and rural families.
