Ukraine Development Project, 1996 - 1999
The Ukraine Commercial Agriculture Development Program (CADP)
provided direct, practical assistance to the hard-pressed
Ukrainian private farmer. The 3-year program, funded by the
U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), ended
in September of 1999. Its purpose was to assist in the development
of private agriculture in Ukraine. CADP, in collaboration
with USAID-funded contractors, successfully developed farmer
cooperatives that facilitated the availability of needed
inputs and services and enhanced the financial success of
private sector agriculture. The CADP used the technical resources
of USDA (primarily the Cooperative State Research, Education,
and Extension Service and its associated universities) to
help increase both the number and economic viability of truly
private farms in selected areas.
The project resulted in four private, registered farmer
cooperatives in the Odessa Oblast, in accordance with Ukraine's
new law on cooperatives. These cooperatives provide services
and inputs to nearly 100 cooperative members, private farmers,
and family household plot owners in the respective regions.
CADP advisors also helped organize 10 groups of private farmers
in Kiev, Mickolaev, Poltava, Crimea, Ternople, Donetsk, and
Volin Oblasts.
Success of the CADP in organization of the Odessa cooperative
demonstrated that the pilot project could be replicated in
other areas of Ukraine. Farmer-owned and operated cooperatives
and associations have the potential to greatly enhance the
production and profitability of private farms and household
plots throughout Ukraine.
Project emphases included establishing cooperative service
centers to provide farmers with desperately needed inputs,
equipment, and credit. Six extension specialists from U.S.
cooperating universities served in five regions in Ukraine.
Working in collaboration with private farmer associations,
agricultural universities and institutes, and the Ukrainian
Ministry of Agriculture, the teams provided training in farm
management, marketing, and business planning—all aimed
at helping private farmers work effectively in a market economy.
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