The European Commission, Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development (DG AGRI), supported by the European Investment Bank (fi-compass), is pleased to announce the Fourth annual EU conference on financial instruments under the European Fund for Agriculture and Rural Development (EAFRD), 5 – 6 June 2018 in Sofia, Bulgaria.

The conference will be opened by Phil Hogan, Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development. He will be joined by high-level representatives from the Bulgarian government, the Bulgarian Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Forestry as well as the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Investment Fund (EIF). 

Bulgaria will hold the Presidency of the Council of the EU at the time of this fi-compass conference.

Following the high-level opening statements, further distinguished speakers will present key topics related to agriculture, its current needs and future, and the design and implementation of financial instruments under the EAFRD in different Member States.

In this conference, participants can expect to get an overview on:

• the new Commission’s proposal for supporting agriculture and rural development through the CAP and financial instruments,
• the opportunities provided by EAFRD financial instruments for EU Member States and regions following the Omnibus regulation and EFSI 2.0,
• ways in which EU Member States and regions are using EAFRD financial instruments for agriculture and rural development so far,
• the impact and results of EAFRD supported financial instruments on the development of their agricultural and agri-food economies.

Participants will hear concrete examples of the design and implementation of financial instruments in agriculture and rural development supported by the EAFRD in 2014-2020. They will also learn from experiences of the banking sector as well as the European Investment Bank Group in realising financial instruments on the ground.