Small-Scale Commercial Agriculture Development Project

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The Small Scale Commercial Agriculture Development Project for Bosnia and Herzegovina will focus activities in the Southeastern part of the country. The area has a Mediterranean climate, which is favorable for early production of fruit and vegetables, has potential for on-farm irrigation resources and continues to have traditional trade with neighboring countries. This area was impoverished by the war but has the potential to respond readily to a revitalization program. The project will 1) encourage farmers to adopt more productive and profitable production systems and increase the marketability of their surplus production; 2) create a dynamic commercial agriculture by strengthening linkages among farmers and markets through the promotion of private sector investment, and credit for farming, agro-processing and trading; 3) facilitate the export of agriculture products, through information and technical assistance; and 4) support measures and investments to strengthen the physical and institutional infrastructure of rural communities. The project components are: a) market integration; b) private agribusiness support; c) commercial farmers development; and d) project management. The increased production and productivity resulting from the project will increase farming and other rural incomes, and reduce unemployment and poverty.