The head of USAID, Samantha Power, condemned Russia’s decision to suspend participation in the grain initiative and announced the allocation of $250M to support Ukraine’s agriculture. The agency plans to involve the private sector, donors, and foundations to raise these funds.
The funds will expand critical agricultural infrastructure: irrigation systems, grain elevators, transshipment facilities, and port and border infrastructure. In addition, USAID will expand support for small and medium-sized agricultural businesses to enable access to financing and resources to facilitate planting and harvesting in 2023.
USAID recalled that the Russian Federation’s aggression against Ukraine has caused more than $6.6B in direct losses to the country’s agricultural sector. The US government has already allocated $350M to the AGRI-Ukraine initiative, which supports more than 30% of farmers registered in Ukraine.