The national government seeks to increase the production of agri-food by financing the expansion of surfaces with an irrigation system in twelve provinces, which it could generate 52,000 jobs and extra exports of US$ 1,180 million.
In that framework, the Chief of Staff, Juan Manzur, received the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries, Julián Domínguez; the Secretary for Strategic Affairs, Gustavo Béliz; and to the presidents of the Central Bank, Miguel Ángel Pesce; and from Banco Nación, Eduardo Hecker, to give impetus to this line of credit that allows the increase of agri-food exports.
The plan contemplates the execution of 21 irrigation projects in 12 provinces that will allow adding 400,000 hectares to those already existing under this modality, together with the authorization of another 600,000 hectares for livestock productionreported the Chief of Cabinet through a statement.
Today I held a meeting with the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries @DominguezJul with whom we address a series of federal projects with the aim of supporting our agricultural producers and boosting regional economies #ArgentinaAdvance pic.twitter.com/AdWSnXzMgN
– Juan Manzur (@JuanManzurOK) January 26, 2022
The projects will be carried out in the provinces of Buenos Aires, Catamarca, Chubut, Corrientes, Entre Ríos, Mendoza, Neuquén, Río Negro, Salta, Santa Fe, Santiago del Estero and Tucumán.
From the national government they assured that “the opportunity to carry out these initiatives not only implies economic and productive benefits, but also allows the generation of better conditions to promote the roots and development of rural communities.”
For the preparation of this initiative, it was explained, a study on the expansion of irrigation areas in Argentina was used as input, which was prepared by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in 2014 and 2015, and in that work a set of areas to be developed were indicated that would allow reaching the additional two million hectares under irrigation.
These announcements were made in a context where vast areas of the national agricultural area were or continue to be affected by a severe drought during December and part of January.
Although no official cuts were made in the production estimate of the main summer crops, nor did the Buenos Aires Cereals Exchange (BCBA), the Rosario Stock Exchange (BCR) calculated a decrease in the corn and soybean crop projection of 13 million tons.
However, the last rains that were registered allowed to recompose the humidity profiles in the central and southern zone of the agricultural area, even with some flooding, although the scope of the benefits for the crops is still unknown.
In this sense, Dominguezexpressed that “since the beginning of the year we have been working on the issue of the water emergency, with special emphasis on budget readjustment, with the aim of meeting the goals of assistance to the provinces and producers affected by the drought.”
“The development of biotechnology to achieve greater productivity and accompany producers with emergency instruments basically consists of recomposing working capital; throughout the country and immediately,” he said.
For its part,the deputy chief of staff, Jorge Neme He assured that “the purpose of the meeting was to analyze the core of a public investment policy that allows the increase of agri-food production, based on the expansion of the irrigated agricultural area in Argentina.”
On the other hand, and also seeking to increase agricultural production and promote investments in the sector, the Government included in the agenda of the extraordinary sessions in the National Congress the project for the Promotion of Agroindustrial Development, which includes accelerated depreciation and tax benefits for the sector.
About, the spokesman for the Argentine Agroindustrial Council (CAA), José Martins, He assured that from the space they await with “expectation the treatment of this project and we are waiting for the parliamentary discussion to improve the content and duration of the stimuli for agricultural and agro-industrial production.”
