Skopje, 25 April 2023 (MIA) – An event marking the beginning of the preparation of the new National Land Consolidation Strategy 2020-2030 within the project “Enhancing land consolidation in North Macedonia” was held Tuesday in the Europe House.

The project is funded by the European Union and co-funded and implemented by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in close collaboration with the Ministry for Agriculture, Forestry and Water Economy of North Macedonia.

Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Economy Ljupcho Nikolovski said that this is of strategic importance for the government, the ministry, the institutions alongside support by the EU and FAO to contribute to solving the problems related to the fragmentation of the agricultural land and the small area of the agricultural holdings.

“The legal, institutional framework for land consolidation has been established, providing the basis for implementing the national consolidation program. Consolidation implementation capacities have been strengthened through system upgrades and involved parties. At the national level, efforts were made to raise awareness of the consolidation of farmers' land among all stakeholders thus improving the understanding of the benefits of implementing consolidation in the areas. The foundations for financial and strategic planning for land consolidation were laid, ensuring efficient planning and allocation of resources for the implementation of these projects. And finally, most importantly, we have successfully implemented land consolidation projects in the field which are beneficial for the farmers,” Nikolovski said.

Nikolovski added that there is a significant reduction in the fragmentation of land parcels, in nine areas in the country where land consolidation have been implemented with the support of this project.

FAO Deputy Regional Representative Nabil Gangi also delivered remarks at the event via video link.

“It is my pleasure to be a part of this significant event in Skopje, as we begin the process of developing a new strategy for the consolidation of land in North Macedonia in the coming years,” Gangi said.

Key achievements of the National Land Consolidation Strategy 2012-2020 and the lessons learned from the previous strategic period were also presented, which will be the basis for the development of the new National Land Consolidation Strategy 2020-2030.