1. ASSISTANCES OF THE WALLOON REGION (Belgium) Contents 1.Introduction and legal basis 2.Types of assistances 3.Recipients 4.Conditions of granting of assistances 5.Types of investments 6.Management of the assitances 7.Evolution Jean-Paul CLERIN Ministry of the Walloon Region General Direction of the Agriculture January 2006 Rural Credit Guarantee Schemes Workshop Budapest

2. 1. Introduction and legal basis Act of 1961 : Creation of a Funds for Agricultural Investment (FIA) Goal: to put additional financial resources at the disposal of the farmers in order to facilitate operations of investment, settlement, transformation and marketing, which would allow to increase the production, to ensure and increase profitability and to cut down cost prices. 1.Introduction 2.Assistances 3.Recipients 4.Conditions 5.Investments 6.Management 7.Evolution ASSISTANCES OF THE WALLOON REGION (Belgium)

3. Act of 1993 : Transfer of the powers of the FIA to the Regional Governments -Brussels Area did not set up any regulation specific to the agricultural structures. -Flemish Area made up the VLIF (Vlaams Landbouw- Investeringsfonds), which exercises the powers of the former FIA, with a few changes relating to the granting and the management of the guarantee. -Walloon Area did not create any regional funds. By decree of the 17-07-1997, the Ministry for the Walloon Area - General Direction of the Agriculture - took over the powers from the former FIA. 1.Introduction 2.Assistances 3.Recipients 4.Conditions 5.Investments 6.Management 7.Evolution ASSISTANCES OF THE WALLOON REGION (Belgium)

4. 1.Introduction 2.Assistances 3.Recipients 4.Conditions 5.Investments 6.Management 7.Evolution 2. Types of assistances -Premiums (in capital) -Subsidy (in interests or in capital) (max 18 years) -Public guaranty (max 15 years) * It supplements real guarantees * Max 75 % of the credit borrowed and eligible * It is subsidiary * It covers the guaranteed (decreasing) capital, as well as the interests and accessories ASSISTANCES OF THE WALLOON REGION (Belgium)

5. 1.Introduction 2.Assistances 3.Recipients 4.Conditions 5.Investments 6.Management 7.Evolution 3. Recipients Farmers (principal or partial occupation) -Physical people -Morals people (object : social, production, transformation, marketing) -Associations ASSISTANCES OF THE WALLOON REGION (Belgium)

6. 1.Introduction 2.Assistances 3.Recipients 4.Conditions 5.Investments 6.Management 7.Evolution 4. Eligibility conditions - Exploitation in Walloon area - To be independent : affiliation to a social insurance fund - Conditions of incomes (principal or partial occupation) - Conditions of working time - Conditions of diploma and/or experiment For moral people : -production society : commercial law, principal object is farm, nominatives actions or parts, 50 % of parts to administrators -Transformation or commercialisation society : commercial law, social object, … ASSISTANCES OF THE WALLOON REGION (Belgium)

7. 1.Introduction 2.Assistances 3.Recipients 4.Conditions 5.Investments 6.Management 7.Evolution 5. Types of investments -First installation -Improvement -Purchase, restoration and repair of existing buildings -Wellbeing of the animals and infectious diseases -Protection and improvement of the environment -Hygiene of the foodstuffs -Exploitations in financial difficulties -Assistances with cooperatives of transformation and marketing -Starting with the recognized groupings -Compensatory allowances -Fodder Groupings ASSISTANCES OF THE WALLOON REGION (Belgium)

8. 1.Introduction 2.Assistances 3.Recipients 4.Conditions 5.Investments 6.Management 7.Evolution 6. Management of the assitances -contact with farmers : During all the time of assistances, ingineers of the walloon area are in contact with farmer. They control the respect of conditions, egibility of investments, etc. -modifications of the assistances : * Various modifications (rate, guaranteed....) * Ask for time of taking away * Partial repayments before due date * Repayments before due date of the totality of the balance * Transfers between husband * Repurchase of debts (same banks) ASSISTANCES OF THE WALLOON REGION (Belgium)

9. 1.Introduction 2.Assistances 3.Recipients 4.Conditions 5.Investments 6.Management 7.Evolution * Transfert (Cession) of credit (between banks) * Ask extension of the guarantee * Reorganization of the credits * Globalisation of the credits * Delays of more than 6 months * Requests for terms of payment * Requests for carry forward of due date * Yearly capital report * Denunciations ASSISTANCES OF THE WALLOON REGION (Belgium)

10. 1.Introduction 2.Assistances 3.Recipients 4.Conditions 5.Investments 6.Management 7.Evolution 7. Evolution (10 6 €) ASSISTANCES OF THE WALLOON REGION (Belgium)