Skopje, 24 June 2022 (MIA) – Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Economy Ljupcho Nikolovski met Friday in Berlin with German Federal Minister of Food and Agriculture Cem Özdemir within the Ministerial conference titled 'Global Alliance for Food Security'. Nikolovski and Özdemir discussed creating joint decisions for all challenges, as well as measures and policies to aid the agricultural sectors. The ministers also discussed continuing the support and realization of capital investments funded by KfW, the Ministry of Agriculture said in a press release. The war in Ukraine dealt a serious blow to the states’ economies, problems, a food crisis, and huge price disruptions. Agriculture is one of the most affected sectors because some of the basic production materials became more expensive. In conditions of a global crisis, countries should work together, sharing experiences and creating joint policies to manage the consequences of the crisis easier, agreed the ministers. Nikolovski informed Özdemir on the measures that the Macedonian government has drafted to support farmers. "Alongside farmers and the expert public, we have prepared a National Food Production Plan which aims to stabilize and increase local food production of, primarily, strategic crops. We’ve also created an Intervention Fund to support farmers, becoming the first country in the region to implement such a measure to help farmers obtain fertilizer, as well as providing support for increased yields of strategic crops. The support for every farmer in such conditions of crisis provides security for them, and they are quite interested in the Intervention Fund’s measures,” Minister Nikolovski pointed out. He expects the Berlin conference to yield many new opportunities to overcome this serious global crisis. “The Open Balkan Initiative strengthened the cooperation between the Western Balkan countries,” Nikolovski said, adding that the initial trilateral agreements between North Macedonia, Serbia and Albania made import and export easier, opening a free market of labor and services. “We’ve achieved massive progress thanks to our joint political and expert efforts in solving open issues, creating a free market for easier movement of goods and services among Western Balkan countries. In this way, we are providing a secure future and a dignified life for all citizens of the Western Balkans. The fact that other countries are interested in joining the initiative speaks for itself,” said Minister Nikolovski. The ministers also concluded that the Cooperation Agreement in the area of veterinary medicine, food and animal feed safety and the phytosanitary degree of the Western Balkans is exceptionally important for the progress of the Open Balkan Initiative, through green corridors at border crossings, mutual certificate recognition and mutual phytosanitary certificate recognition. Albanian Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Frida Krifca and Kosovo Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Faton Peci also attended the multilateral meeting.