On 23–24 October, the international conference ‘Rural Development in Ukraine: Pathways to Sustainable Integration and Reform’ took place in Truskavets, Lviv Oblast, with the support of the Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the US Embassy in Ukraine.

The conference was attended by academics, educators, representatives of government bodies, agricultural advisers, the President of the Lviv Agrarian Chamber Pavlo Muzyka, and its Chairman Ihor Vuytsyk. 

Madara Silina, Chargé d’Affaires of the Embassy of the Republic of Latvia in Ukraine, addressed the conference participants with a welcoming speech, highlighting the importance of the initial stages of successfully reforming the policy of supporting rural development in Ukraine based on the EU model.

Iryna Koryakina, a representative of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Agrarian and Land Policy, provided a detailed overview of the procedures for adopting draft laws that will soon be passed to continue the European model of agrarian reforms.

Taras Vysotskyi, First Deputy Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine, outlined in detail the key initiatives aimed at ensuring the balanced development of the agricultural sector in line with the requirements of the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy, with a focus on initiatives to support the livestock sector and the development of processing enterprises.

Roman Korinets, Director of the National Association of Agricultural Advisory Services of Ukraine, emphasised the importance of supporting the development of advisory services, which provide vital information to farmers on accessing programmes and resources.

Laimdota Straujuma, Prime Minister of Latvia from 2014 to 2016, spoke about the European integration process in Latvia and the challenges the country faced on the path to EU membership for its agricultural sector.

Natalia Siliska, a representative of the Latvian Ministry of Agriculture, highlighted the issue of financial support for the development of farming and cooperation in the country for the period 2021–2027, with a view to producing food products that are competitive on the European market.  

Martin Cimmermanis, Chairman of the Board of the Latvian Centre for Rural Advisory and Education, emphasised the importance of transforming the agricultural advisory system to ensure farmers are informed about support programmes at EU level.

On 24 October, conference participants took part in a thematic training session on strategic planning for the development of rural communities, drawing on the experience of the Republic of Latvia.

Source: Lviv Agrarian Chamber