To date, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food has processed 4,264 operations in Aragon, for 314 million euros, corresponding to the line of credits ICO-MAP-SAECA, established in the Royal Decree-Law on urgent measures to support the agricultural sector due to the drought, approved in March 2022. This measure to facilitate access to financing has had a high degree of response from the primary sector, with a demand that has exhausted the subsidized loans six months before the end of the term of validity.
Of the operations processed in Aragon, following the corresponding verifications, 3,370 operations (29.6% of the national total) have been approved for 237 million euros (39% of the national total). Of this amount, to date, 2,402 operations have already been formalized (32.5% of the national total) for a total of 171.5 million euros (41.3% of the national total).
Currently, overall at the national level, the State Limited Company of Agrarian Protection (SAECA) has approved 11,370 operations amounting to 608 million euros. Currently, the credit remaining from those operations that are not formalized due to reasons beyond the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPA) are being reallocated to new operations. About 20% of the operations have been formalized in young farmers.
Access to liquidity
The ICO-MAP-SAECA line has as potential beneficiaries farmers, agri-food cooperatives, operators of wholesale trade in fruit and vegetables and cotton preparation, as well as operators in the fisheries and aquaculture sector.
Its purpose is to facilitate access to liquidity to deal with the loss of profitability caused by the drought and the consequences of the war in Ukraine, a goal that is met when the loan is formalized. After the loan has been formalized, the beneficiary’s financial burden is reduced with the application of MAPA aid, which subsidises up to 15% of the principal of the subscribed credits. Regarding the subsidy to the cost of the guarantee, it is automatic at the time of formalization, since SAECA directly transfers its cost to the MAPA.