February 1 (SeeNews) - The World Bank said it has approved a 30 million loan ($37.3 million) for the Second Montenegro Institutional Development and Agriculture Strengthening Project (MIDAS 2).
The objective of the Project is to improve the competitiveness of agriculture and fisheries through enhanced delivery of government support in alignment with EU accession requirements, the World Bank said in an e-mailed statement on Wednesday.
Through a grant programme, the project will increase economic activities in rural areas, generate jobs and leverage private investments through beneficiaries’ contributions. This project will also provide much-needed support to the fisheries sector. At the same time, the project will help the Montenegrin producers to participate in the EU market and benefit from access to a larger demand for their products, the World Bank said.
"This project will help create jobs and enable agriculture producers to improve their livelihoods through the provision of public goods and the support to private investments", said Emanuel Salinas, World Bank Country Manager for Montenegro.
The original MIDAS project, which began in 2009, provided grants modelled after the EU’s pre-accession financial support scheme IPARD to agricultural producers through Montenegro’s public institutions. Around 660 farmers received IPARD-like grants to enhance their agricultural production. MIDAS has also helped with strengthening institutions providing support and services in the areas of food safety, animal health, and rural development, the World Bank said.
The World Bank portfolio in Montenegro includes six active projects, totalling approximately $170 million. Areas of support include governance, environment, agriculture, education, and energy efficiency.
($ = 0.803779 euro)