EU agrees EUR 1bn for farmers in poor countries
(BRUSSELS) - EU nations agreed on Friday to release one billion euros (1.25 billion dollars) over three years to farmers in poor countries, diplomats said.
The funds, which EU budget ministers agreed at a meeting in Brussels, are supposed to help farmers in developing countries lift their production by buying seeds and fertiliser.
The money will be released in three phases up to 2010 with an instalment of 270 million euros due already for this year.
Under an original proposal, the funds were to come from unspent money in the EU's farm subsidy programme, but Germany and several other countries were opposed to the idea of using the budget's surpluses for a programme outside the bloc.
As a result, ministers had to scrape up financing from the budgets for external operations, an emergency aid reserve and another fund that sets aside cash for unforeseen needs.
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Poor Countries