The Regional Secretary for Agriculture and Forestry stated that the Young Farmer programme, approved by the Council of the Government, was published today in the Official Journal.

According to him, this is “a fundamental strategic tool” to rejuvenate one of the main regional economic sectors, ensure its sustainability and stimulate new knowledge in view of the continuous development of agriculture in the Azores. 

“It is a necessary, ambitious and future-oriented programme, which aims to make the agricultural sector even more attractive for young people in a sector that has past, present and will have a future,” João Ponte said, adding that it was developed in close coordination with the sector's partners. 

The government official said this programme is strongly committed to measures aimed at training and qualification, responding to a shortage identified in the sector, in order to provide young people who are about to enter or even those who already work in agriculture with the skills necessary for the good performance of their activity. Moreover, it will also facilitate the access to the knowledge and skills necessary for the proper management of farms.
 
In order to minimise constraints on the access to bank financing at the beginning of activity, the Government will create a support line of credit to consolidate the installation of young farmers (CREDIJOVAGRI), which can also be used by those who have been working in the sector for five years. It is intended to reimburse the interest and costs associated with the credit agreement at a maximum of 50%, depending on the farm income confirmed by the respective tax declaration. 

Another measure concerns the allocation of a regional supplement to the Premium for the installation of Young Farmers, up to a maximum of 3,000 Euros, depending on the farm income and for a period of five years after installation. The access to this measure requires the submission and approval of an application for the Installation of Young Farmers under the PRORURAL+ programme.
 
"Hence, the Government intends to provide advantageous conditions to offset the financial constraints that young people usually face when they begin their professional activity," stressed João Ponte. 

These measures also include the positive discrimination of young people in regards some support measures already implemented for Azorean farmers, namely the increase of five percentage points in the non-refundable reimbursement under the Incentive Scheme for the Purchase of Agricultural Land (RICTA) and the increase of 10 percentage points in the reimbursement rate of investments made under the PROAGRI and i9AGRI programmes. These two initiatives aim to reinforce the modernisation and innovation indicators of farms, improving overall performance, sustainability, competitiveness and working conditions.

João Ponte stated that the Young Farmer programme is directed to young people aged between 18 and 40, not only those who intend to begin their agricultural activity with an application for the Young Farmers Premium but also those who are already farmers.