The framework of the 19 proposals for the revision of the Common Agricultural Policy 2023-2027 was analyzed by the Minister of Rural Development and Food, Lefteris Avgenakis, during the long inter-ministerial meeting held at the HYPAAT, for the reconstruction of Thessaly.

It was attended by, among others, the Minister of Environment and Energy, Theodoros Skylakakis, the Minister of Digital Governance Dimitris Papastergiou, the Deputy Minister of Climate Change and Civil Protection, Christos Triandopoulos, the Deputy Minister of Infrastructure, Nikos Tachiaos, the Deputy Minister of Finance, Thanos Petralias, the Deputy Minister of Agricultural Development and Food, Stavros Keletsis, the head of the FSA, Giorgos Stratakos, the president of ELGA, Andreas Lykourentzos, the president of OPEKEPE, Kyriakos Babasidis, while the Minister of Development and Investments, Kostas Skrekas, sent a message.

Also participating were the regional governor of Thessaly, Dimitris Kouretas, and of Central Greece, Fanis Spanos (via teleconference), the mayor of Volos, Achilleas Beos, the president of the Federation of Agricultural Associations of Larissa, Rizos Maroudas, the president of the United Federation of Agricultural Associations of Karditsa, Kostas Tzellas, representatives of the Self-Government from the Parakarlian regions and municipalities that have been affected and representatives of the TOEB, livestock, agricultural, beekeeping organizations and generally productive and institutional bodies of the region, as well as the Thessalians-members of the Pan-Hellenic Coordination of Blocks.

“Thessaly remains the first priority for the government of Kyriakos Mitsotakis and based on our choice we are moving forward with speed in the reconstruction of Thessaly” said Mr. Avgenakis, among other things.

According to Mr. Avgenakis, the compensations from ELGA, which come from the state budget, are expected to exceed the initially calculated amount of 260 million euros.

As he pointed out, next Monday the platform will be opened for the submission of applications for inclusion in the Measure concerning the affected livestock farmers and beekeepers of Thessaly, Northern Fthiotida and Evros, amounting to 45 million euros, for the free replacement of livestock and the reconstruction of stables .

He also mentioned that all the runners-up in the affected areas of Rhodes, North Evia and North Fthiotida joined the Improvement Plans.

As Mr. Avgenakis noted, the new call for “Denitrification” will be published within April, stressing that the areas where the measure will be applied are those that are characterized as sensitive to nitrates, according to the maps of the Ministry of the Environment.

Regarding the Parakarlian regions, Mr. Avgenakis said that within a short time it is expected that the European Commission will approve the request for the activation of the Measure and immediately after that the required Ministerial Decision and the relevant invitation will be issued, no later than March 31 with April 15, 2024. The measure in question amounts to more than 40 million euros for each of the two years of its implementation.

The Minister of Rural Development and Food also presented the main objectives of the Greek proposals regarding the changes to the CAP. Among them is the simplification, facilitation and acceleration of control procedures, but also the flexibility of applying the so-called ecological schemes.

He referred to the controls that are carried out to deal with the Greekization of milk and PDO products, to the labels of the products, but also to whether the labeling they have meets the national and EU legislation etc.

Within the next few days, the Ministerial Decision on the arrangements for the rural current will be published, as the Minister of Environment and Energy, Theodoros Skylakakis, stated in his statement.

Regarding the Water Management Organization of Thessaly (ODYTH), the multi-legislation is being submitted for comments to the ministries and will be put up for public consultation in the next few days.

Among other things, Mr. Skylakakis spoke about the “APOLLON” program, underlining that it will “give cheaper electricity to municipalities, DEWA, ​​GOEB and TOEB, in the case of Thessaly to ODYTH, as well as to vulnerable households”.

“We are planning, in collaboration with the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Finance, a development regime that will make the affected companies eligible for modernization investments, as well as protection and adaptation measures from the consequences of the Climate Crisis,” said the Minister of Development and Investments, Kostas Skrekas, in his message.

The Deputy Minister of National Economy and Finance, Thanos Petralias, said that on Monday, April 1, the advance of 41 million euros will be paid for the EFFK on agricultural oil, based on IACS declarations.

He noted that from 2025 the payment of the tax return on agricultural oil will become permanent and a new method will be followed where 50% will be given horizontally and the remaining amount will be linked to the consumption rate of each farmer.

He emphasized that the destruction caused by the “Daniel” and “Elias” disasters is estimated at more than 3 billion euros, of which more than 2 billion are related to infrastructure and more than one billion are compensations.

The money that has been allocated from the first aid so far amounts to 43 million euros and it concerns about 20,000 farmers and breeders, the Deputy Minister of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection Christos Triandopoulos pointed out in his presentation.

“These days the payment of 50% is being completed for the farmers who have lost their facilities due to the summer fires in Magnesia” he said and announced that in the next period the payment of the advance payment for the plant capital and especially for the tree crops will begin .

The allocation of 900,000,000 euros for road projects and 450,000,000 euros for railway projects, from the Recovery Fund and the NSRF, was announced by the Deputy Minister of Infrastructure Nikos Tachiaos, pointing out that the process for the number of contracts that will proceed is underway.

He also emphasized that by May 18, the Collective Integration Decision (SAE) will be issued through which the credits will be committed, a procedure that is necessary as 50% of the money comes from the State Budget.

He also said that at the end of next week he will visit all the affected areas of Thessaly, where the interventions that need to be done will be examined separately in each municipality and he said that where necessary, there will be corrections.

For his part, the regional governor of Thessaly, Dimitris Kouretas, emphasized that since the day he took office until today, the requests and the corresponding files submitted by the affected have increased sevenfold.

According to a document he submitted, he noted that so far temporary rehabilitation projects totaling 61,550,000 euros have been implemented in the region and for their continuation he requested an additional 15,000,000 euros.

Finally, with regard to the permanent restoration of the embankments and the cleaning of the riverbeds, he said that “we have already communicated the need for financing in the amount of 533,150,000 euros. This amount is required to restore the rivers, so that they return to their previous state,” he said.