Colombian President Ivan Duque signed a law on a new initiative providing for the introduction of zero tariffs on imports of agricultural and livestock products while creating a fund to support small and medium-sized local businesses
The measure is aimed at reducing costs for medium and small farmers, as well as encouraging the use of environmentally friendly resources, the portal reports en.mercopress.com .
“Colombia is becoming the first country to adopt a law to counter the situation with the global increase in prices for agricultural resources and strengthen the ecological transition to more sustainable agriculture,” said Colombian Agriculture Minister Rodolfo Zea.
The new law, by introducing a zero duty, establishes a barrier in order to reduce costs and increase the profitability of farmers in the country.
“This process will be facilitated by another fundamental factor included in the bill – the creation of an observatory of the means of production market, which will allow producers and involved entities to receive up-to-date information,” the Ministry of Agriculture of Colombia said in a statement.
Priority is given to the production of own bioresources and the possibility of supporting the development of new projects in the country, which will allow “to have intelligent agriculture, improve the dissemination of agricultural knowledge through the training of farmers.”
The Ministry of Agriculture of Colombia stated that in 2021, about 487,000 farmers benefited from various programs and strategies aimed at restoring the economy of this sector through special credit lines.
