STRATEGIC CHALLENGES:
Currently, public expenditure in support of the agriculture sector, as а share of public expenditures in the GDP of the country (1.68%) is three times higher compared to middle-income non-OECD countries (0.62%) and ten times more than OECD countries (0.17%). Despite this, agricultural efficiency and competitiveness, as well as producer incomes, remain low. The bulk of public sector financing is spent on irrigation systems (63%) and often aims to support the production of cotton and cereals. Most of the budget funds are spent оn electricity costs for water pumping and operation and maintenance of existing irrigation systems. As а result, not enough is spent оn development and modernization of irrigation and drainage systems.
А large part of support for general services is currently recorded in the budget framework under the category of “miscellaneous,” indicating а lack of strategic planning for puЫic spending in the sector. There is also по systematic linkage within the budget system between International finance and credit programs in support of the sector (more than $ 3.5 Ьillion) and large government investment programs or strategic planning processes.
For the development of agriculture, it is necessary to improve the financing system and revise the amounts of allocated budget funds for state programs and services in the following areas: (i) Environmental protection, increasing soil fertility and introducing water-saving technologies; (ii) Food safety, animal disease control, veterinary and phytosanitary services; (iii) Support of various forms of associations (cooperatives, clusters, production associations); Improvement of monitoring systems for agricultural markets and the collection of statistical data, development of market and transport and logistics infrastructure; (v) Developing а system of applied research and development, education and knowledge dissemination in agriculture.