The authorities of Kazakhstan are addressing the issue of seeds for the sowing campaign. As Mazhilis deputy Aidarbek Khojanazarov said, voicing the official position, at this time the country is counting seeds. It is expected that a quota will be introduced under which a VAT deferment will be introduced, reports the APK News agency.
“This year there is a rather difficult problem with seeds. Already in September I raised this issue. Now the balance of seeds is being calculated, how many seeds there actually are, what is the deficit. And a certain quota will be introduced for this deficit, according to which a deferment of VAT will be considered (not the abolition of VAT, but a deferment) for a year, so that farmers do not withdraw their funds further after such a difficult 2023,” A. Khojanazarov said in Chamber of Entrepreneurs "Atameken" of Kostanay region on Friday.
As noted by representatives of the Association of Agricultural Producers of the Kostanay Region, who took part in the meeting at the RPP, the organization has repeatedly made proposals for the provision of seeds. The farmers noted that it is necessary to cancel VAT on the import of seeds for spring field work in 2024 or provide a benefit for paying VAT on imported seeds from the EAEU countries, using the method of using the VAT that farmers have to offset.
“It is necessary to allow non-seed farms to sell reproductive seeds grown by them from original or reproductive seeds purchased from seed farms and research centers and having the appropriate certificates of the EAEU countries.
It is also necessary to increase the standards (percentage) of the area for purchased seeds for a period of one year for spring field work in 2024,” noted agricultural producers.
At the meeting with business, a number of other issues relevant to farmers on the eve of the sowing season were voiced. In particular, obtaining diesel fuel.
“It is necessary to consider the issue of allocating fuel and lubricants for sowing with a deferred payment. For farmers to receive subsidized diesel fuel through the Ministry of Energy with a deferred payment of 7-8 months, this will give a good impetus. But there is one point: there are a lot of private organizations in this chain. Accordingly, it is necessary to work out a mechanism for compensating for their losses, because these private owners also take out loans from somewhere. The issue needs to be resolved along the entire diesel supply chain,” the deputy noted.
Regarding financing, the issue of loan extension remains important.
It is necessary to begin considering issues of budget financing for the ACC for at least 5 years, for the further opportunity, in the event of worsening circumstances for the borrower, to independently regulate the extension of loans within the framework of their schedules, farmers believe.
“Switch subsidies to financial institutions and make them recipients of subsidies directly from the Ministry of Agriculture. At this time, untimely payment of subsidies by agricultural departments entails an increase in the actual interest rate, since the borrower is now repaying the loan at the full rate: 22% instead of 6%,” noted the farmers.
Representatives of the region's agriculture believe that today a deep transformation of the industry is necessary. Indeed, in addition to internal factors, Kazakhstan is also influenced by trends and conditions of the world market.
“The industry needs to create clear prospects with clear long-term development positions,” the Association said.