With hope, but so far without money: 4 billion state support for 2018 for livestock

For comparison, in 2017 funding amounted to only 170 million UAH under the budget program "State support of the livestock sector".

The Ukrainian Stock Breeders Association as a branch agrarian association, which unites enterprises engaged in livestock production and processing of meat products, agricultural cooperatives and farms, animal feed producers and other enterprises closely associated with the agricultural sector, actively struggled for the state financing of livestock, sought to increase and preserve it at all stages of the adoption of the state decision.

The draft Law of Ukraine "On the State Budget of Ukraine for 2018" was presented on 3 October at a meeting of the Committee on Agrarian Policy and Land Relations of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. It was provided for an increase in financing of the livestock sector by 13.5 times - to 2.3 billion UAH, for which we need to thank the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and the government. Additional funding for the livestock sector was planned to be spent on partial reimbursement of the cost of construction and reconstruction of livestock farms, purchase of breeding stock.

But even this decision was not easy, because some experts and organizations declared the opposite position in the absence of the need of cattle farmers in the state support and the inability to master it. Argumentation of opponents was not rich. Stock breeders cannot master these means, and that is all.

In response to this, and in order to determine the true situation in the field, the Ukrainian Stock Breeders Association conducted a survey of 54 enterprises - producers of livestock products across Ukraine on the amounts of funds that they need for reconstruction and expansion of enterprises. The results of the survey showed that only the said 54 enterprises need government funding for more than 2,048,250,000 UAH. The specified information in the context of each enterprise was provided to the government. At the same time, it is clear that the real demand of the region for livestock breeders in Ukraine is much greater.

Therefore, in October 2017, the Association issued an official address to the Prime Minister of Ukraine Volodymyr Hroisman on taking measures on the part of the government to maintain the planned Law of Ukraine "On the State Budget of Ukraine for 2018" the planned increase in funding under the budget program "State Support to the Livestock Sector" (code 2801540) in the amount of 2,3 billion UAH.

Complicating the situation was the fact that even in the Agrarian Committee of the Verkhovna Rada there was no unified position on increasing the financing of the livestock sector, there were discussions about changing the target area of 2.3 billion UAH for animal husbandry by diverting 2 billion to budget subsidies. Traditionally, farmers have seriously lobbied for their interests.

It bears reminding that in 2017, the government began direct support of the agricultural sector under the name "Financial support for activities in the agro-industrial complex." Although the procedure for obtaining a budget subsidy for the development of agricultural producers and stimulating the production of agricultural products, as provided for in Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine No. 83 of February 8, 2017, was so imperfect that enterprises for a long time could not receive assistance (for lack of procedure) and companies that conducted mixed activities (subsidized and non-subsidized, for example, growing grain forage) did not receive this subsidy and incurred substantial economic losses.

In order to preserve livestock financing and its increase, the Livestock Association repeatedly not only addressed official appeals, but also met and communicated with respected representatives of government authorities, the Ministry of Agrarian Policy, the Ministry of Economic Development, and people's deputies of Ukraine. It was not easy to explain that the absence of appeals for state support in animal husbandry is due not to the lack of demand for it or to the fact that livestock keepers do not build farms or buy livestock, but precisely the bureaucratization of the receipt process.

Indeed, today the conditions for obtaining state support are quite complex. Therefore, in the process of collecting documentation, enterprises do not want to receive it. Therefore, the decision of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine of October 28, 2015, No. 884, specifies the detailed procedure for using the funds provided for in the state budget to support the livestock sector. The procedure of the contest itself and the recognition of an enterprise having grounds to claim state support is no less complicated. That is, the state does everything to ensure that the entrepreneur voluntarily abandons the funds, which in fact are very necessary for him.

Also, often appropriate conditions are created for receiving financial support provided for by the state budget for the corresponding year: the passports of budget programs, the commission regulations are not approved in time, local commissions are formed with delay to accept applications for compensation, all subordinate regulatory legal acts necessary for functioning of the support allocation procedure. For example, according to the information of the Ministry of Agrarian Policy, which was provided by letter No. 37-21-15 / 22272 from September 29, 2017 to inquiry No.94 / 09 of September 20, 2017, as of the end of September 2017 for the first half of 2017, expenditures under the budget program were 2801540 "State support in the field of livestock breeding "were not carried out (!)" in connection with the need to amend the regulatory legal acts and approve the necessary measures to these budget programs. "

Therefore, the Ukrainian Stock Breeders Association has repeatedly asked the authorities to turn their face to the livestock breeders and simplify the procedure for obtaining this state support so that as many enterprises can use it. It is necessary to simplify the conditions for participation in the tender and the procedure for obtaining state support for reimbursement of the cost of construction and reconstruction of farms and livestock complexes, and prevent their non-use. The support of farms should be at the stage of construction or reconstruction of farms and livestock complexes, and not after their completion (as now). Commissions should be formed in time, where entrepreneurs will apply for state support, which will work efficiently and promptly. In addition, the competitions should be transparent. Otherwise, from our livestock production, "legs and horns" can really remain.

On November 15, 2017, the chairman of the Ukrainian Stock Breeders Association, Iryna Palamar, took part in the meeting chaired by the First Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine - Minister of Economic Development and Trade Stepan Kubiv with the participation of people's deputies of Ukraine, representatives of the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine, the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine, authorities and industry associations on the revival of the Ukrainian village, the development of livestock, dairy and beef cattle, agriculture co-operative societies and personal peasant farms.

Personally, the Deputy Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine Olena Kovalova and Viktor Sheremeta, the First Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine - Minister of Economic Development and Trade Stepan Kubiv, the Chairman of the Association of Livestock Breeders of Ukraine Iryna Palamar, presented her own developed program of support for the united territorial communities and the restoration of Ukrainian stock breeding, which received positive feedback from scientists and manufacturers, and the implementation of which can be partially used by states constant prices support livestock article.

At the end of December 2017, the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine informed the Ukrainian Stock Breeders Association about the preservation of the planned increase in livestock financing and the endorsement in the Law of Ukraine "On the State Budget of Ukraine for 2018" of December 7, 2017 under the budget program for KPKRK 2801540 "support of the livestock sector" in the amount of 4,0 billion UAH, so while the livestock farmers are optimistic and expect the long-awaited support for financing. Producers have already planned in 2018 the construction and (or) reconstruction of farms and livestock complexes and purchase of livestock, but the direction and mechanism for providing these funds have not yet been reported to the management of Ukrainian farmers.

The Association of stock breeders systematically receives inquiries (letters, calls) from economic entities in the agrarian sphere regarding the possibility of using in 2018 state aid under the budget program for KPKRK 2801540 "State support of the livestock sector" in the amount of 4.0 billion UAH. In this connection, on January 3, 2018, the Ukrainian Stock Breeders Association has already asked the Ministry of Agrarian Policy to provide information on livestock activities, which are planned to be repaid under the budget program for KPKRK 2801540 "State Support to the Livestock Sector" in the amount of 4,0 billion UAH; the time from which business entities can start seeking support, the mechanism for using funds, the criteria that applicants must meet. In the near future, we are waiting for a response from the Ministry of Agrarian Policy, of which we will certainly inform the stock breeders.