Instrument for pre-accession assistance (IPA II) is a kind of an assistance to countries that are potential candidates for the EU membership or countries that have received the status of a candidate country for accession to the European Union in order to implement the stabilization and accession process in accordance with their specifics. The priority area of agriculture and rural development is intended for the EU membership candidate countries with the aim to prepare themselves for the implementation and management of Common Agricultural Policy.

IPARD II Programme period 2014.to 2020. offers support to investments in the amount of 175 million euros, and is intended for strengthening the competitiveness within the sector of agri-food production and processing, which will further provide assistance to gradual compliance with the EU standards in the area of hygiene, food safety,veterinary, animal wellfare and environmental protection, as well as diversification of rural economy.

The programme also supports establishing of producers groups, rural infrastructure, trainings, including the Extension Service, agro-ecological schemes, as well as local initiatives; and candidate countries for the EU membership, through this programme, are preparing for using funds of the European Agriculture Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD).
IPARD II Programme has been aproved by the EU and adopted by the Republic of Serbia and it is being realized through the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management and the Directorate for Agrarian Payments.

This is the first kind of any assistance intended directly for the beneficiaries,i.e. agricultural producers- both physical persons and legal entities, including the following regions: а Belgrade Region, Vojvodina Region, Šumadija and West Serbia Region and South and East Serbia Region.

First public calls for support under the IPARD fund are expected towards the end of the year within the following measures:

М1/ Measure 1 – Investments in physical assets of agricultural holdings, is a measure that, through significant support to investments in physical assets, aims at raising productivity and competitiveness of agricultural production through technical improvement. Therefore, agricultural holdings will be in a better position to comply with a set of national requirements and EU standards of environmental protection and animal welfare. Through the support to the purchasing of new machinery and new technology, this measure will contribute to reducing the influence of climate change to the agricultural sector.

М3/ Measure 3 – Investments in physical assets concerning processing and marketing of agricultural and fishery products, is a measure that, through support to the investments into the modernization of processing capacities, aims at reaching overall EU standards, raising productivity, competitiveness and general performance within the processing sector of milk and milk products, the sector of meat and meat products and within the sector of fruits and vegetables. In addition, these measures will contribute to better positioning of products in the market and to increasing export.

Measure 7 – Farm Diversification and Business Development, is a measure that by supporting the development of rural tourism aims to increase the level of development of economic activities in rural areas with the possibility of creating new jobs, and to increase the income of agricultural holdings.

Measure 9 – Technical Assistance is a measure that supports technical assistance and costs related to the implementation of the IPARD program. The aim of this measure is to assist in the implementation and supervision of the program, as well as in its eventual modification.

For more details please contact: ipard.info@minpolj.gov.rs or +381 11 31 07 013