Experts say Moldova's high value agriculture has huge potential due to be turned into account

Chisinau, 8 July /MOLDPRES/ - The high value agriculture of Moldova, which has been neglected for years, has a huge potential to be turned into account. This is the conclusion of participants in an international conference titled "High value agriculture in Moldova: investment and export opportunities", organised by the Millennium Challenge Corporation (USA) and the Millennium Challenge Account Moldova today in Chisinau.

"This particular sector can give us opportunity to develop the country, develop the rural environment, as we planned within the Rural and Agricultural Development Strategy," said incumbent Agriculture and Food Minister Ion Sula. Policies in this area still rest on three basic pillars: modernising agriculture, enhancing competitiveness of agricultural products and substituting imports.

"We are importing products that we can also produce domestically, at the same. we often export raw materials and import products with high added value," said the minister. According to him, with the enforcement of the Free Trade Agreement with the EU, Moldovan producers got a good chance to turn into account the huge potential they have.

"The Compact Programme, along with other development partners, created opportunities for transition to advanced practices that generate revenue growth, modernisation of the social and economic infrastructure of the rural areas. Profitable business investments in agriculture are growing rapidly", said State Secretary of the Economics Ministry Lilia Palii.

According to the ministry’s data, the flow of foreign direct investment in the economy amounted to 207.4 million dollars in 2014, increasing against the previous periods. "We registered a 1.6-fold increase of this indicator in the first quarter of 2015 against the year before," said Palii, adding that 183 companies with U.S. capital operated on the Moldovan market.

The U.S. Government provided substantial support through the Millennium Challenge Programme for improving the competitiveness of the agricultural sector from Moldova and would continue backing performance in this area, said U.S. Ambassador to Moldova James D. Pettit.

Moldovan Investment and Export Promotion Organisation (MIEPO) Executive Director Dona Scola informed investors attending the conference that Moldova had the most competitive tax regime in the region. There are premises "for switching to high value agriculture," said the source.

More successful business stories, backed including through the Millennium Challenge Account Moldova, were presented at the international conference. 

(Reporter V. Bercu, Editor M. Jantovan)