Under the IPARD III program implemented by the Agriculture and Rural Development Support Institution, a grant assistance of 7.2 billion lira was provided to 1079 projects. Within the scope of the IPARD III program carried out by the Agriculture and Forestry Ministry’s affiliated institution, the Agriculture and Rural Development Support Institution (TKDK), a total of 1079 projects were eligible to receive a grant assistance of 7.2 billion lira in a year. According to information obtained from the TKDK, entrepreneurs in many sectors ranging from animal production to plant production, handicrafts to rural tourism, renewable energy to machinery parks are being supported under the IPARD Program co-financed by Turkey and the European Union (EU). Turkey ranks first among candidate countries to the EU with the success of utilization rates in the IPARD I and IPARD II Programs since 2011. The support provided contributes significantly to the development of agriculture-industry integration in the country, strengthening the infrastructure for high value-added production, and creating new employment opportunities. INCREASED DEMANDS WIDENED THE SCOPE
Implementing the IPARD Program in 42 provinces until last year resulted in a significant demand in rural areas for investments in line with EU standards. As a result of negotiations between Turkey and the EU, the geographical scope of the IPARD III Program, which started last year, was expanded to cover all 81 provinces. During this period, Turkey’s national contribution rate was increased from 25% to 50%, and the total budget of the IPARD-III Program, which will be implemented for 7 years starting from 2024, was raised from 555 million euros to 785 million euros. 251 MILLION EURO BUDGET ANNOUNCEMENT
To expedite the examination processes of applications during the program period, an annual call schedule was published for the first time. Within this framework, a total budget of 251 million euros was allocated to 5 call announcements for areas such as physical assets of agricultural enterprises, fisheries, and organic farming. It has been approximately a year since the first call was made. When the distribution of these projects is examined, there are 396 projects in beekeeping, 177 in fruit-vegetable processing and storage facilities, 147 in rural tourism facilities, 92 in plant production, 88 in craftsmanship and high value-added product production, 54 in agricultural machinery parks, 39 in milk collection centers, 32 in milk processing centers, and 54 projects in other sectors. Within a year of the evaluation of the applications received under the IPARD III Program, a total of 1079 projects were eligible to receive 7.2 billion lira in grant assistance. While some of the projects are still in the completion process, contracts have been signed for 337 of them. Once these projects are implemented, approximately 13 billion lira worth of investment will be added to the country’s economy, and thousands of jobs will be provided. When examining the number of projects eligible for support nationwide, the top 5 provinces are Ordu with 80 projects, Siirt with 56, Diyarbakır with 51, Şanlıurfa with 49, and Erzincan with 38. In provinces where the program has been implemented, the top 5 provinces eligible for support in terms of the number of projects are Siirt with 56, Bitlis with 22, İzmir with 15, Batman with 14, and Muğla with 14. UP TO 3 MILLION EUROS IN GRANTS
Investments under the IPARD III Program receive grant support ranging from 50-75%. The budget limits for supported projects vary depending on the sector, ranging from 5,000 euros to 3 million euros. Positive discrimination is applied by the TKDK to encourage the more active participation of women and youth in agriculture and rural areas, aiming to further increase the economic contribution of these groups to the country.