April 29. 2010, Tblisi, Georgia: As part of the USAID-funded Access to Mechanization Program, CNFA held a ceremony marking the official handover of seeds donated by Pioneer Hi-Bred Seeds to enable nearly 2,000 internally displaces people (IDPs) in Shida Kartli, Kvemo Kartli and Kakheti to plant a spring crop.
The event drew an impressive crowd. In addition to representatives from numerous major local media outlets, CNFA was honored to host U.S. Ambassador to Georgia John Bass, USAID/Georgia Mission Director Jock Conly, and Georgia Minister of Refugees Koba Subeliani and Deputy Minister of Agriculture Aleksandre Tsintsadze.
Though the day was overcast, guests from World Bank, FAO, Care, as well IDPs from different settlements also joined. CNFA Senior Advisor Davit Kirvalidze officially opened the ceremony, greeting guests and giving the audience background information on the Access to Mechanization Program. Ambassador Bass also spoke, as did John Hibbard of Pioneer and Minister Subeliani. Deputy Minister Tsintsadze expressed his special thanks to CNFA for their work with IDPs in Georgia.
To close the event, the Pioneer truck was officially opened and the seed unloaded, one step closer to those who need it so much.
CNFA has been working with Georgia IDPs since 2008, just after the conflict with Russia. In 2008-2009, the USAID-funded Georgia Agriculture Risk Reduction Program (GARRP) assisted in the restoration of livelihoods of farmers, including internally displaced persons (IDPs) who were affected by the August 2008 war. Pioneer corn seed was among the commodities purchased by the program and delivered to beneficiaries. More than 9,000 hectares of corn was planted in spring 2009 and at harvest, beneficiary farmers received an average yield of 6 tons per hectare, nearly triple the average from the last 10 years from traditional varieties.
In 2010, CNFA continues this important work through the Access to Mechanization Project, funded by USAID through the Farmer-to-Farmer Program. The Access to Mechanization project is an important part of America's $1 billion in post-conflict assistance to Georgia. It builds on the success of previous US Government assistance programs, introducing badly-needed services to support Georgia’s small farmers. The program creates Machinery Service Centers that will provide fee-based custom machinery services to allow Georgia's smallholders to put more land into production, improve cultivation practices and increase incomes.
As a result of this program, USAID and CNFA hope to generate 270 new jobs, $4 million in new sales revenue for assisted firms, $2 million in additional net income for MSC enterprises, 15,000 additional hectares covered by newly-introduced machinery services, and $10 million in additional farm income as a result of access to machinery services.
