ProCredit Bank organizes the Sustenagora Academy, a program dedicated to conservative and regenerative agriculture through which customers from the agro segment will participate in training and experience exchange sessions organized in Constanța and Timișoara, the credit institution announced. The courses will take place over the next 12 months.
Thus, ProCredit Bank, in partnership with Amazag and EFSE (European Fund for Southeast Europe), laid the foundations for this training program that aims to meet the specific needs of farmers in the west and southeast of the country, on their way to the transition to agriculture sustainable. Farmers will benefit for free from the courses and experience offered by the Sustenagora Academy program, all expenses being covered by ProCredit Bank, in partnership with EFSE. The first session of the Sustenagora Academy took place on May 28, 2024 in Constanța.
“After the success of the Sustenagora conferences on sustainable agriculture organized last year, we are proud to launch the first edition of the Sustenagora Academy in Constanța, a learning program dedicated to farmers interested in the transition to conservative and regenerative agriculture. The initiative complements the bank’s financing offer for farmers, contributing not only to the improvement of agricultural practices, but also to ensuring long-term financial benefits, through faster recovery of investments. Farmers will benefit from the opportunity to participate in open discussions about applied practices of sustainable agriculture, in sessions that will be organized physically, online and through applied farm visits. This varied approach will allow participants to learn both theoretically and practically, ensuring that they can immediately apply the knowledge gained in their own farms,” says Valentina Neagoe, Head of Business Clients ProCredit Bank.
“We are pleased that, together with our partners, ProCredit Bank and EFSE, we continue to support Romanian farmers with technical, useful and quickly applicable information related to the transition to conservative and regenerative agriculture. In the current context, marked by the effects of climate change that are acutely felt at the level of farms in Romania, doubled by the need of farmers to continue to remain profitable in a challenging economic climate, we support, with the help of our financial partners, the transition of farms to an agriculture better. I think we all have a duty to those around us, and we, at Amazag, do this by being more attentive to the environment, to the food put on everyone’s tables, but also to the economic performance of farmers,” adds Laurentiu Asimionesei, founder of Amazag.
The Sustenagora Academy aims to facilitate the resources and knowledge needed by farmers to easily integrate sustainable agricultural practices into their farms. Such practices help build a sustainable future for agriculture, enabling farmers to achieve high yields while protecting and improving soil quality.
“Given that almost a third of our loan portfolio is dedicated to agriculture, the Sustenagora Academy is an essential part of our mission to promote sustainability and resilience among farmers. As a member of the Net-Zero Banking Alliance, ProCredit Bank Group has committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2050, according to the Science Based Targets (SBTi) initiative. Thus, our objectives for Scope 3 prioritize small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in agriculture and industry. Through the increased attention we pay to Romanian agriculture, we support the decarbonization of our customers and also promote rural development and sustainable food security,” also says Alexandra Floricică, Head of Sustainable Development.
The Academia Sustenagora program includes 7 learning modules in which the beneficiaries participate for free. At the first edition, the Sustenagora Academy already has two groups of farmers interested in the transition to sustainable agriculture, who operate in the west and south-east of Romania, they were selected following individual interviews with representatives of ProCredit Bank and Amazag. The agenda combines online teaching modules and on-site technical meetings, thus promoting collaboration between participants. It was designed by integrating information provided by local and international specialists from partner companies and farms.