Monday, December 7, CNFA-Georgia launched the Access to mechanization Project (AMP), a $5.1 million initiative funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) through the Farmer-to-Farmer program. The three-year project will address the shortage of agricultural machinery, particularly among Georgia’s small farmers, which has been a serious constraint to agricultural development.

U.S. Ambassador to Georgia John R. Bass joined Deputy Minister of Agriculture Malkhaz Akishbaia, representatives of the international donor community and Georgian private agribusiness at a press conference and reception to mark the launch the initiative.

The project will use a combination of matching grants, leveraged commercial finance, business and extension training and volunteer technical assistance to establish 25-30 machinery service centers. These will be private businesses that will provide fee-based custom machinery services up to 14,000 small farmers. The program will also leverage and additional $20 million from private sector companies like John Deere and Case New Holland.

The Access to Mechanization Project is funded as part of the U.S. Government’s $1 billion pledge to assist the people of Georgia. As part of this commitment, machinery service centers established through the program will provide discounted machinery services for 2010 crop production to approximately 2,000 families displaced by the recent conflict and reintegrated into new durable settlements.

The U.S. Government estimates that the project will help to create up to 250 new jobs and generate over $5.8 million in revenues for the new centers. In addition, the mechanization will help farmers cultivate more land and increase productivity, which will lead to higher incomes.

Click here for more information on the Georgia Access to Mechanization project.