Events

Alexei Mayorov: The German-Russian Agricultural Policy Dialogue is a vital part of German-Russian cooperation

Federation Council members Alexei Mayorov and Sergei Lisovsky attended the opening ceremony of International Green Week in Berlin


During his visit to Germany, Chair of the Federation Council Committee on Agriculture and Food Policy and Environmental Management Alexei Mayorov attended a meeting of the Council of the German-Russian Agricultural Policy Dialogue. The event was held at the Federal Ministry for Food and Agriculture and was chaired by State Secretary – Deputy Minister Michael Stübgen.

Alexei Mayorov said in his remarks that over the past decades the German-Russian Agricultural Policy Dialogue had become a vital part of German-Russian cooperation in agriculture. “The Federation Council Committee on Agriculture appreciates our German colleagues’ readiness for cooperation, as well as your pragmatic and constructive mentality. We hope that business ties between our countries will continue to develop despite the complex situation in international politics,” the Russian senator noted.

He said that interaction between the Federation Council Committee on Agriculture and Food Policy and Environmental Management and the German-Russian Agricultural Policy Dialogue (hereinafter referred to as the Project) on current aspects of cooperation in agriculture continued to grow stronger in 2018.

The senator recalled that new joint events for 2018 were set out at the Project’s Council meeting held at the Russian Ministry of Agriculture on 21 November 2017. “As before, the development of rural areas remained a priority for Russian agriculture and for our cooperation, along with the development of a legal framework for organic production plus food quality and safety,” he explained.

Alexei Mayorov reminded those present about the Project’s contribution to drafting the Federal Law on Organic Production and Amendments to Legislation, which was adopted in August 2018.

The senator said that between 2012 and 2018 members of the Federation Council Committee attended the BioFach fair in Nuremberg, a leading international trade fair for organic products. They also took part in the seminars and information visits organised within the Project’s framework to promote the German practice of organic production. German experts have helped organise many joint conferences, roundtable discussions and seminars at the Federation Council.

“Creating conditions for the sustainable development of rural areas is a vital strategic goal of Russia’s state policy. This is why our cooperation focuses on the development of rural areas, support for small and medium-sized businesses, and legal regulation in this sphere,” Alexei Mayorov noted.

He also spoke about the progress of cooperation in forestry in 2018. The Federation Council Committee and the Project have always tried to boost Russian-German exchanges in this sphere. “They hold joint events to discuss forestry issues, such as forest use and regeneration, the maintenance and restoration of protective forest strips, forest protection, the upgrading of legislation to prevent and fight forest fires, international forestry practices, and regional forestry specifics,” the senator said.

He went on to say that the Federation Council Committee welcomes the Project’s new sphere of operations approved in 2018 to provide practical assistance to Russian-German strategic partnership in forestry at the federal and regional levels. “We are ready to provide whatever assistance is necessary and otherwise to promote our cooperation in this sphere,” Alexei Mayorov pointed out.

The senator recalled that some 2,000 delegates from 122 countries attended the Second Eurasian Women’s Forum, which was organised by the Federation Council and the Interparliamentary Assembly of the CIS Member Nations in St Petersburg in 2018. The Federation Council Committee on Agriculture and Food Policy and Environmental Management invited President of the German Association of Rural Women (DLV) Brigitte Scherb and DLV Managing Director Daniela Ruhe to attend the forum.

Alexei Mayorov added that the Project helped organise an expanded meeting of the Russian Agriculture Ministry’s Committee of Rural Women on women’s role in the development of rural areas, as well as a special bilateral event on interaction between the Russian and German associations of rural women. Following that meeting, Chair of the Russia Committee of Rural Women Irina Gekht and DLV President Brigitte Scherb signed a protocol on cooperation and joint activities to strengthen cooperation based on mutual benefit.

Alexei Mayorov and his first deputy, Sergei Lisovsky, attended the opening ceremony of International Green Week 2019 held at the Messe Berlin exhibition complex.

The 84th International Green Week (IGW), the world’s largest exhibition for the food industry, agriculture and horticulture, is being held in Berlin between 18 and 27 January 2019. The exhibition programme includes sales, agricultural, forestry and landscaping fairs, symposiums, seminars, forums and other events.

The rich business programme of IGW 2019 gives agricultural producers and buyers from around the world an opportunity to establish mutually beneficial ties.