Ludmila Katlabuga
The authors of the draft – opposition MPs – draw attention to the deep crisis in the agri-food sector, which affects agricultural producers and the food security of the population.
Agricultural production is declining, imports are constantly growing, and more than 12.5% of the population is not protected in terms of food security against the background of a continuous rise in prices for basic foodstuffs.
At the same time, the state is accumulating multi-billion dollar debts to farmers for subsidies and VAT refunds, jeopardizing future agricultural campaigns.
Opposition proposals
The draft offered the Agriculture Ministry an urgent package of measures to support farmers, including increasing the National Fund for Agricultural Development by at least 2 billion lei, paying off debts for 2024-2025, refunding VAT and excise duties on diesel fuel, limiting trade mark-ups on agricultural inputs, as well as ensuring access of domestic products to store shelves and the state procurement system.
Deputies warn that the lack of prompt action could lead to chain bankruptcies and disruption of agricultural production in 2026.
Minister’s admonishing response
Agriculture and Food Minister Ludmila Katlabuga used a critical and admonishing tone towards the sponsors of the draft.
“If anyone thinks that a resolution against the minister or the ministry’s policies can in itself make life easier for farmers, I have to disappoint: not disunity, but unity of intent, consistency and firmness of decisions is what can really improve the situation of farmers,” she said.
According to her data, the volume of unfulfilled obligations to farmers amounts to about 1.9 billion lei, and the authorities are looking for alternative ways to repay them.
“The Finance Ministry is analyzing possible solutions to provide the resources needed to repay debts to farmers. Including through mechanisms such as issuing state securities or improving revenue collection as a result of fiscal and customs policies, in order to ensure these payments systematically and sustainably, if possible in one tranche,” Catlabuga said.
At the same time, according to Serghei Ivanov, chairman of the commission for agriculture and food industry, the debts exceeded 4 billion lei.
Ludmila Catlabuga called it untrue.
She considers the draft vote of no confidence as “a political exercise, an attempt at self-parody or a desire to increase her own visibility”.
In response, Vasile Costiuc, chairman of the “Democrația Acasă” faction, advised that “the moral lessons you came to read here, you should read them elsewhere – in your village of Visoca”.
“The situation is not worse than in the economy as a whole”
PAS deputies recognized some problems in agriculture. Thus, according to Alexander Trubka, they lie in business management. And in general, the situation in agriculture is not worse than in the economy as a whole.
He cited data on bankruptcy of agricultural enterprises: out of about 9 thousand active companies only 283 are in the process of insolvency, i.e. about 3%. For comparison, in the economy as a whole, 2,871 companies out of 57,000 are in the process of insolvency, which is about 5%.
The deputies were unanimous in one more issue – support for local producers.
“I would very much like to ask you to support measures that will stimulate, first of all, the financing of producers of products consumed by Moldovans,” Trubka asked the head of the Agriculture Ministry.
He was supported by another PAS deputy – Lilian Carp: “We should consume everything we produce ourselves, and in some areas we produce twice as much per capita as other European countries”.
After a lengthy debate, the draft vote of no confidence in the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry was rejected by 53 votes of PAS deputies.
But the minister promised the MPs that she would “follow the advice she heard in her daily work”.
