One of the important areas in the negotiations on Ukraine’s EU membership is the agricultural sector. Anticipating Ukraine’s accession to the EU, with its vast farmland and even greater challenges, the relevant EU institutions are already thinking about the difficult task of future cooperation.
Meanwhile, we will have to transform our agricultural sector and change our agricultural policy in line with the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy and the European Green Deal, develop a national agricultural development plan, coordinate our activities with European institutions, and reach an understanding with neighbouring countries.
In particular, we need to convince our immediate neighbours that Ukraine’s accession to the EU and cooperation in developing green and inclusive agricultural policy will benefit us all.
In this project
- We continue to study the environmental and climate components of the CAP that will affect our agricultural producers and the objectives that Ukraine needs to achieve.
- We want to demonstrate the benefits of Ukraine’s accession to the EU for neighbouring countries, in the field of environmental and climate protection in agriculture, using the example of cooperation between the Carpathian countries.
Why the Carpathian countries?
- Over the 20 years of the Carpathian Convention’s existence, an effective platform for cooperation has already been created between such different countries (Poland, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, Serbia, and Ukraine).
- 5 of the 7 Parties to the Convention are EU members and Ukraine’s nearest neighbours.
- The Carpathian Convention has adopted the Protocol on Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development. Priority areas for the implementation of this protocol include, in particular, support for short food supply chains from farm to fork, development of quality schemes and certification of mountain products, etc.
- The Working Group on Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development (WG SARD) is tasked with ensuring coherent cooperation with relevant global and EU policies and initiatives. This includes due attention to the Common Agricultural Policy of the European Union, the forward-thinking European Green Deal, the Farm to Fork Strategy, and the transformative UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. Additionally, WG SARD will actively contribute to realizing the Sustainable Development Goals outlined in the 2030 Agenda, particularly those concerning food security, nutritional enhancement, and the advancement of sustainable agriculture.
- At the last Conference of the Parties to the Carpathian Convention (October 2023, Belgrade, Serbia), an initiative to support pastoralism and mountain culture was announced, and stakeholders made recommendations for further assistance in the post-war recovery of Ukraine, including support for the development of local agricultural practices, the creation of local products, and the reduction of supply chains.
Project activities
- Study of EU legislation that has to be adapted/adopted at the intersection of environmental and agricultural issues and its publication on the resource already developed by the RAC “Society and Environment” https://compass27.info with the support of the International Renaissance Foundation.
- Study visit to Ukraine for WG SARD members and opinion leaders from the Carpathian Convention Parties: to learn about the Ukrainian experience of craft production in the Carpathians, organic agriculture, geographical indications and opportunities for agritourism in the mountains.
- Online consultations with the Carpathian stakeholders:
o How we can work together to achieve climate neutrality in line with the objectives of the European Green Deal.
o Nature-based solutions in mountain agriculture as part of the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy.
o Implementation of agro-ecological programmes in the Carpathians.
o Modern development of pastoralism and support for local products.
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Project duration – February 2024 – March 2025.
Project partners:
- RAC “Society and Environment”
- The project implementation will be supported by the Secretariat of the Carpathian Convention
This project is being implemented by ICO IC «Green Dossier» with the support of the European Union and the International Renaissance Foundation within the framework «European Renaissance of Ukraine» project.
Its content is the exclusive responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union and the International Renaissance Foundation.
