Brasília, June 24, 2003 (Agência Brasil - ABr) - The Harvest Plan for Family Farming, 2003/2004, launched today, is one of the Zero Hunger Program's structural activities. Beginning in July, R$ 5.4 billion will be made available to families through various programs for the development and expansion of family farming throughout Brazil.
In addition to providing resources, the Plan, which is a partnership between the Ministries of Food Security and Agrarian Development, is concerned with making sure that the funds reach producers. Debts owed by family farmers and agrarian reform settlers, in the amount of R$ 2.45 billion, will be renegotiated.
The chief activities of the Plan are as follows:
Pronaf Food Products - A credit line to stimulate the production of rice, beans, manioc, corn, and wheat (basic food products in Brazil), increasing by 50% the resources that are available, in comparison with the previous harvest.
Food Products Purchase Program - R$ 400 million are available for the purchase of products from family farms. The goal is to guarantee compensatory prices in every region. The program is carried out by the Conab (National Supply Company) to form regulatory stockpiles. The limit on purchases is R$ 2.5 thousand per family.
Technical Assistance - To improve the productive matrix and expand production, R$ 15.5 million will be invested through the Pronaf A. For farmers in the semi-arid region - the target population for the Zero Hunger Program in 2003 - R$ 4 million will be invested in training the population to co-exist with the semi-arid conditions, through the Pronaf Training program.
Harvest-Guarantee - In the semi-arid region, more than 320 thousand farmers have already enrolled in the Harvest-Guarantee program, part of the Coexistence program, launched at the end of March. It is a minimum income program, providing up to R$ 475.00, in six installments, in the case of crop losses, due to drought, of 50% or more in harvests of corn, beans, rice, manioc, and cotton. In other parts of the country, family farmers are also able to count on the Proagro (Program to Guarantee Agricultural Activity), an insurance policy that covers bank loans contracted to pay production costs.
Pronaf Card - To simplify farmers' access to credit, the card will automatically be renewed for up to 6 years for those who apply the funds correctly and repay them by the due date.
Semi-Arid Pronaf - Allocation of resources for the construction of small water works, such as cisterns, irrigation dams, and water desalinization projects. (DAS)
