Prime Minister Edi Rama dinned with agri-tourism entrepreneurs, at “Mrizi i Zanave” an excellent model of this domain, to discuss on government’s decision on Friday that defines the criteria of agri-tourism structure organization which will be also succeeded by a financial and fiscal support programme to develop agri-tourism.
Minister of Agriculture Niko Peleshi pointed out that following this important decision the government is working on a new initiative relevant to investments in agri-tourism. “We adopted classification standards on agri-tourism structures on Friday. We are now working on a remarkable fiscal incentive. It is not yet fully accomplished as work is still under progress. This incentive will, however, later span in more than three of agri-tourism investments and will exempt investments from the major investment tax.”
Mrizi I Zanave host, Altin Prenga said that a better organization and education of small farmers is necessary in order to provide qualitative and guaranteed products, while brought forth his successful enterprise. “Entrepreneurship is now far better. We have had major difficulties on food arrangement and processing by small farmers who provide milk, the vegetables also but must be educated and organized due to their disorganization. We serve to a plethora of customers, but, however, we cannot export.”
Furthermore, Minister of Agriculture Peleshi underlined that milk trade will follow-up, as a product aimed at achieving European standards necessary to its export, after the undertaken measure to discipline meat trade. “We will now focus on milk, as animal products are delicate to ensure guarantee, following the meat trade. There is a leverage to invest in these products even economically, because they are products that Europe does not yet accept us to export, because we cannot prove the reliability of the products. In regard to milk, the whole action is based on two sides. One side is the law and the other, subsidies. We will provide 100 lek per/liter for every farmer who manages to produce first quality milk. This is an incentive for a farmer to invest in hygienic conditions. One of the problems that cause pollution is the utensils used to collect milk. 1 million USD will be granted to equip farmers with EU-certified containers. 70% of the value will be covered by us while the dairy will pay the rest.”
Minister Peleshi noted as well that the government adopted an amendment in the strategy of rural development. In this regard, he explained that focus will primarily be on 100 villages which will become role models of rural development. “We even adopted an amendment to the Strategy of Rural Development. The focus will be on 100 villages hence we have drafted a map from north to south where to focus during these three years in order to make them models to other villages. One of the villages is Fishte, Lezha Island as well. Governments programmes will rather intensive in this region.”
Meanwhile Prime Minister Edi Rama said that the Rural Development Strategy will gradually extend to all the villages in the country. “It does not imply that others will be excluded, but these 100 villages were neuralgic references outside the city’s space, where a strong impetus on rural development could be provided, by developing tourism potentials, developing agriculture and livestock as well as in the context of tourism, certainly, by interfering on the entire components that pertain the environment and cultural heritage in order to achieve complexity. Fishte and the island of Lezha include the two points that we will focus on to develop and stimulate.”
