The Farmers’ Force Association calls on all the state institutions to facilitate the urgent convening of the National Commission for Emergency Situations to declare a state of emergency in agriculture nationwide as soon as possible, IPN reports.

In a letter addressed to the President, the Government, the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry and the Parliament’s commission for agriculture and food industry, the Association notes that the declaring of the state of emergency in agriculture is absolutely necessary to save the sector. Thousands of agricultural enterprises, with tens or hundreds of thousands of jobs they hold, are in danger of going bankrupt and being liquidated. Consequently, everyone will lose, not just the farmers.

The arid climate with heat, high temperatures and extreme weather phenomena witnessed in the Republic of Moldova in recent weeks led to record damage throughout the country. The agricultural activity has had catastrophic consequences on a large scale for the whole of Moldova. All farmers are affected, regardless of the agricultural technology applied to growing crops, including those with organic technology, the letter says.

The Farmers’ Force Association proposes introducing a moratorium for farmers when calculating penalties and late payment interest. It also asks the state to ask the European Union and international organizations to provide rapid financial support to stabilize the situation. The farmers also seek the suspension of the payment of bank and non-bank agricultural loans from July 2024 to July 2025.  The Association also suggests creating a special financing program for farmers affected by climate change to offer the possibility of readying the situation.

The Association said that about 300,000 people work in agriculture and the Government must take urgent measures to save this sector from collapse.