SLOVAKIA’S agricultural sector will receive an additional €70 million in aid to help farmers cope with the consequences of this year’s poor harvest. The government approved the aid package at a session held in Nové Sady, in Nitra Region, the TASR newswire reported on August 22.
The assistance should include direct payments equalling a total of €1.67 million, advantageous loans from the Environmental Fund worth a total of €30 million, and state assistance for employing people who have difficulty finding work reaching €660,000.
Moreover, the government will repay part of the excise tax paid on red diesel, a special fuel used only by farmers. The ministers allocated €10 million for this purpose.
The poor harvest, especially in the case of marketable agriculture commodities, will cause a shortfall in the earnings of farmers, which will make it difficult for them to finance further production, TASR wrote based on the data of the Agriculture Ministry. Problems are expected especially in relation to livestock.
