The Regional Assistant Secretary of the Presidency for Foreign Affairs said the Government of the Azores "welcomes" the publication of a report on the implementation of scheme contain specific measures for agriculture to benefit EU Outermost Regions (POSEI), approved by the European Commission last Thursday.
 
"In addition to some specific conclusions on the implementation of POSEI in the Azores, which exceeds 95%, the most important aspect concerns the EU Commission's acknowledgement of our situation as an Outermost Region that requires specific responses. In this regard, POSEI is mentioned in this report as a successful response," said Rui Bettencourt.
 
According to it, "POSEI is particularly suited to meet the last three mentioned challenges (complex topography, small size and adverse weather conditions), particularly by providing addition support to local producers and strengthening the value chain in these difficult circumstances. Moreover, the programme may be quickly altered in the case of extremely adverse conditions."
 
For the government official, this report also contains "a fundamental recommendation for what comes next, which is the maintenance of POSEI."
 
"We are at an important opening moment for various programmes and responses that the ORs must provide in coming years and a EU Commission's report of this kind, which says POSEI should continue, is vital for us," stressed Rui Bettencourt.
 
The recently released report on POSEI considers that "the overall performance of POSEI programmes in the 2006-2014 period is positive, especially regarding its ability to address the particular challenges of agriculture that are closely related to the specific geographical situation of ORs and defined in Article 349 of TFEU."
 
On the other hand, it points out that "POSEI seems to be crucial in preserving the traditional activity that consists in so-called 'diversification of production' in these regions as well as in ensuring a sufficient supply of agricultural products."
 
Rui Bettencourt stressed that the Regional Government's has greatly contributed to the many positive conclusions on this report, either for the efficiency in implementing POSEI funds or for the permanent follow-up of European issues.