The results of the financing granted through AFIR are visible everywhere in Romanian villages, through the combined efforts of the beneficiaries of these funds, but also of the Agency's employees. The effective absorption of the allocated funds is good so far, but we must keep the same intense pace to fully intake these financings, so necessary for farmers and investments to ensure a sustainable development of the rural environment.
The Agency for the Financing of Rural Investments received and analyzed 111,221 financial application in the amount of more than 12.3 billion euros, between March 2015 and January 2023, by farmers, processors, entrepreneurs and public authorities and financed through the National Development Rural Program 2014 – 2020. Of these, AFIR concluded financing contracts with 88,944 private and public beneficiaries, granting a total of 6.7 billion euros in non-refundable funds.
AGRICULTURAL SECTOR:
The Rural Investments Financing Agency (AFIR) financially supported farmers who carry out investment projects in agriculture in Romania for the modernization of agricultural holdings, for the technology of processing units, for the development of fruit farms and especially for supporting young farmers to become heads of holdings.
RESULT INDICATORS
Thus, in the period 2015 – 2022, AFIR received 77,721 funding requests for investments in agricultural holdings and orchards, in small and large farms, for the installation of young farmers and for the development of associative forms, as well as for the settlement of insurance premiums. The total value of the requests is of 5.6 billion euros. 66,709 investments were contracted, and the total value of the projects reaches 2.6 billion euros. Until this moment, AFIR has paid 1.86 billion euros to farmers for the settlement of the investments made.
YOUNG FARMERS
13,924 young farmers supported through sM 6.1 Support for setting up young farmers
4,718 young people supported through sM 6.3 Support for the development of small farms
785 young farmers supported through sM 4.1 Investments in agricultural holdings
68 young fruit growers supported through sM 4.1a Investments in fruit farms
We mention that out of the total number of young farmers, 4,132 young farmers are from the mountain area.
Submeasure 4.1
With the help of European funds available to farmers under sub-measure 4.1, the following were established:
1,821 farms for field crops
509 fruit farms
126 farms for raising dairy cattle
153 mixed farms
113 farms for beef cattle
83 horticultural farms
68 poultry farms
51 swine farms
16 sheep and goat farms
Also, 657,576 hectares represent the surface of agricultural holdings financed through the sub-measures managed by AFIR.
PROCESSING:
In the current financial programming, the agri-food sector in Romania benefited from the financing of 788 processing units through the Rural Investment Financing Agency (AFIR). Investments in the processing and marketing of agricultural and fruit products and those for the processing of raw materials in order to obtain non-agricultural products were financed by AFIR under sub-measures 4.2, 4.2a and related GBER and de minimis schemes through the National Program for Rural Development (NPRD) in the period 2015 – 2022.
RESULT INDICATORS
AFIR received 1,506 requests for financing investments in processing units, which exceed in value 1 billion euro. Following the investment project selection process, the Agency concluded financing contracts with 788 processors for projects totaling 521 million euros. In order to settle the expenses incurred up to this point within the projects, AFIR made payments to the beneficiaries of this sector of 323.5 million euros.
The following were achieved:
585 agricultural and fruit processing units
228 investments for grain or fodder storage
66 projects for meat and eggs
26 vegetable and fruit processing factories
16 seed and oilseed processing projects
8 projects processing protein crops
58 dairy units
47 investments for the processing of fruit products
9 projects for winemaking
5 projects for honey processing
NON-AGRICULTURAL:
The non-agricultural sector received funding through PNDR 2020 in the amount of 276 million euros for 3,080 investments specific to non-agricultural activities, contracted under sub-measures 6.2 and 6.4.
YOUNG ENTREPRENEURS
707 young entrepreneurs benefited from 42.6 million euros for the establishment of non-agricultural activities through sM 6.2
219 young entrepreneurs benefited from 38.2 million euros for the establishment of non-agricultural activities through sM 6.4
Non-agricultural investments
They supported:
3,801 SMEs in rural areas
876 agropensions
128 investments for craft activities
1,484 activities related to the provision of services
PUBLIC UTILITY INVESTMENTS:
The local public authorities that carry out investment projects with non-reimbursable European funds in the development of the rural environment obtained financial support for 2,428 investment projects, through the Rural Investments Financing Agency (AFIR). Thus, the investments financed in the period 2015-2022 through the National Program for Rural Development (NPRD) aim at agricultural access infrastructure, water supply and sewage infrastructure, road and social infrastructure, as well as the protection of cultural heritage.
RESULT INDICATORS
For public utility investments, AFIR received online requests for 3,518 investment projects worth 2.84 billion euros. Following the evaluation and selection process, AFIR concluded 2,428 financing contracts for public utility projects with a total value of 1.64 billion euros. The payments made by AFIR to the public beneficiaries of EAFRD exceed 1.3 billion euros, up to now.
The European funds granted through AFIR have significantly contributed to the development of the rural environment and implicitly to a better standard of living for the inhabitants of the villages.
The following were achieved:
3,458 kilometers of communal roads
1,257 kilometers of agricultural roads
1,735 kilometers of water supply networks
2,967 kilometers of sewage networks
255 kindergartens
40 nurseries and after-school centers
22 higher secondary education institutions
610 cultural homes
55 cultural heritage monuments of local interest
Thus, as a result of these investments, more than 4 million inhabitants benefit from the basic infrastructure and access projects in the countryside.
(data available in January 2023)