Brasília, May 20, 2004 (Agência Brasil) - The federal government will spend US$ 2.2 billion (R$ 7 billion) on the National Family Farming Program, 2004/2005. This measure should permit an additional 450 thousand farmers to benefit from the program of loans to producers. The announcement was made yesterday (19) by the Minister of Agrarian Development, Miguel Rossetto, following a meeting in the Planalto Palace with representatives of the tenth rendition of the Clamor of the Land.
"This quantity expresses Lula's Administration's support for family farming in the country. We are working to improve our performance even more," Rossetto emphasized. He revealed that the government will expropriate 100 thousand hectares of land for agrarian reform as soon as possible. Also, a commission will be formed by the Ministries of Planning, Agrarian Development, and Finance, together with representatives of the Incra (National Institute for Colonization and Agrarian Reform), to study the job and salary plan for Incra employees.
The president of the National Confederation of Agricultural Workers (Contag), Manuel dos Santos, left the meeting pleased with the 30% increase in the funds that will be made available for the 2004/2005 harvest, in comparison with 2003/2004. The resources rose from US$ 1.7 billion (R$ 5.4 billion) to US$ 2.2 billion (R$ 7 billion).
According to Santos, the government was more successful this time in meeting the grievances of the sector, but he stressed that the movement is still not completely satisfied. "We will still make a detailed assessment of the government's response to our demands," he affirmed.
On his way out of the meeting, Santos displayed a document containing the government's responses to the 183 grievances presented to the government by the farmers. He said that the counter-proposal would be evaluated that evening at the Clamor of the Land encampment, which has been set up on the Esplanade of the Ministries since Monday (17).
The government also sent the National Congress a bill earmarking US$ 137.2 million (R$ 430 million) for agrarian reform throughout the country. This is the first portion of the US$ 542 million (R$ 1.7 billion) budgetary supplement announced by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in April.
The Minister of Agrarian Development also announced the disbursement of over US$ 1.2 billion (R$ 4 billion) for family farming in the current crop year and reaffirmed the goal of settling 115 thousand families by December.
"According to April's figures, 30 thousand families are in the process of being settled. By June we should have surpassed the total number of families settled in the entire year of 2003," Minister Rossetto underscored.
He also pointed out that the contracts on behalf of the most impoverished rural segments through the National Program for the Strengthening of Family Farming (Pronaf) were allotted more than the total funds disbursed over the last four years.
"We gave a national dimension to the Pronaf and advanced in the North, Northeast, and Center-West regions. We also expanded technical assistance," he remarked. Through the Incra, the Ministry of Agrarian Development will universalize technical assistance services for families in settlements all across Brazil by year's end.
Rossetto also stressed the importance of winning approval for the Constitutional Amendment Proposal on Slave Labor, which will expropriate properties where the use of slave-like labor is confirmed and convert them to agrarian reform. The proposal is expected to be voted on the floor of the Chamber of Deputies next week.
The Minister called on the social movements for dedication and mobilization to pass the text of the amendment in the National Congress. "This should be an occasion of great commemoration for our government and all the social movements, which should accompany the voting from this point on," Rossetto declared.
Translator: David Silberstein
