zidres eng 2016

B I L L S U M M A RY: Z I D R E S

WHEREBY ARE CREATED AND DEVELOPED THE INTEREST AREAS FOR RURAL, ECONOMIC

AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT ZIDRES

BILL SUMMARY

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CONTENT

INTRODUCTION.............................................................................................................3

PURPOSE OF ZIDRES PROJECT..........................................................................................4

PURPOSE AND BENEFITS OF ZIDRES.................................................................................6

WHAT REQUIREMENTS MUST TERRITORIES MEET?....................................................7

WHO CAN DEVELOP PRODUCTIVE PROJECTS?.................................................................8

WHAT IS A PARTNERSHIP PRODUCTIVE PROJECT AND NON-ASSOCIATIVE PRODUCTIVE PROJECT?.................................................................8

WHICH ARE THE NATIONAL GOVERNMENT INCENTIVES TO THE APPROVED PROJECTS?........................................................................................9

HOW WILL THIS ZONES BE IDENTIFIED AND DEFINED?..................................................10

ARE PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS AUTHORIZED FOR INVESTMENT?..............................11

ARE THERE ANY LIMITATIONS FOR INCORPORATING A ZIDRES?.....................................12


INTRODUCTIONThrough the issuance of Law 1776 of 2016, which was approved by the President of the Republic Juan Manuel Santos Calderon on January 29, it created the Interest Areas for Rural, Economic and Social Development (hereinafter called “ZIDRES” for the acronym in Spanish). These areas have potential for agriculture, livestock, forest conservation and fishing activities that are isolated from the urban centers, which demand high costs for their agricultural and climate characteristics, they have low population density, high poverty rates, or lack the minimum infrastructure for transporting and marketing products.

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PURPOSE OF THE ZIDRES PROJECT

The bill proposes a new model for agricultural development, which enables the availability of land, where the employers and farm workers, with or without land, can generate large-scale production activities that will maximize the labor productivity and the reduction of agricultural production costs.

It is provided in the bill, that the productive projects within the ZIDRES are performed through contracts in which the State, through the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, will act as guarantor of the peasants rights.

There will be two kinds of productive projects; Associative and non associative. However, it is important to mention that it is still necessary to regulate on behalf of the National Government, the registration, approval and monitoring of projects that seek to be developed in these areas, as well as the conditions of the contracts that establish the legal entailment system between the peasant and private population who want to develop this partnership scheme.

Within the ZIDRES development framework, the aforesaid will be supported by the State, who will develop legal, financing and infrastructure mechanisms so that these areas are fully developed. The ZIDRES shall be defined by the Government through the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development who will define by a decree the agricultural frontier, taking into account the definitions of the environmental reserve areas and other land use restrictions imposed by any governmental authority.


PURPOSE OF THE ZIDRES PROJECTThe model proposed in the bill is set as an alliance of the following kind:

For these partnership projects, the National Government will grant incentives, promotion instruments, guarantees and co-financing of projects developed within the ZIDRES; for this reason, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development will determine the conditions for the financial instruments approved by the National Government, the government stimulus programs and make sure they address the needs of the farmers, farm workers and rural women linked to the projects.

(i) The business sector, whether natural or legal

person.

(ii) The “agricultural workers” those with land, would

contribute with it and their labor to the partnership

project, and those without land would provide only their labor

to the partnership project.

(iii) The State, who acts as a promotor and surveillance regulation entity between the

employer and the farmer.

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ZONE DELIMITATION

PURPOSE AND BENEFITS OF ZIDRES

Increase sustainable land productivity and

competitiveness.

Promote the social, economic and sustainable development of the area;

and the development of infrastructure for competitiveness.

Encourage environmental conservation.

Promote rural employment, food security, and regional

development.

Allow new investment. Strengthen the innovation and competitiveness of tropical agriculture through creating Science, Technology

and Innovation centers, and also Research and Development Centers*.

These are agricultural special areas located within the national territory which are isolated from the country´s major urban perimeters.

*The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, in coordination with the entities of the Science and Technology National System and the National Environmental Research Institute, shall define and later establish a policy for generating and transferring technology for the rural development strategy.

WHAT REQUIREMENTS MUST TERRITORIES MEET?


ZONE DELIMITATION

PURPOSE AND BENEFITS OF ZIDRESWHAT REQUIREMENTS MUST TERRITORIES MEET?

The territories must meet the following requirements:

Territories that are isolated from urban centers.

That demand high productive adaptation costs given their

agrological and climate characteristics.

That have low population density.

That present high poverty rates.

Territories that lack basic infrastructure for transportation

and marketing products.

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WHO CAN DEVELOP PRODUCTIVE PROJECTS?

WHAT IS A PARTNERSHIP PRODUCTIVE PROJECT AND NON-ASSOCIATIVE PRODUCTIVE PROJECT?

who meet the requirements of the law.

LEGAL PERSONS NATURAL PERSONS

These are productive projects in which an agricultural entrepreneur partners with small and medium rural producers, agricultural workers and / or rural women, with or without land. It is not necessary to be detached from the land to be part of a ZIDRES, for which the landowners may join the productive projects.

Non-associative productive projects are those in which an employer may lease, use, develop, acquire or receive contributions, private land defined within ZIDRES. In this case, it is not necessary to establish a partnership with small and / or medium peasant producers.

WHICH ARE THE NATIONAL GOVERNMENT INCENTIVES TO THE APPROVED PROJECTS?


WHO CAN DEVELOP PRODUCTIVE PROJECTS?WHICH ARE THE NATIONAL GOVERNMENT INCENTIVES TO THE APPROVED PROJECTS?

For partnership projects, the incentives will be the following:

TO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT: The partnership projects will be the only beneficiaries of the incentive or stimuli policies.

SPECIAL CREDIT LINESfor farmers, agricultural

workers, rural women and businessmen.

INCENTIVES FOR

COMPANIES resulting from alliances that are

designed for the productive project development.

Support for up to

100% of the resources for productive projects.

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HOW WILL THIS ZONES BEIDENTIFIED AND DEFINED?

THE IDENTIFICATION of potential areas to be declared a ZIDRES, will be performed by the Agricultural Rural Planning

Unit -UPRA- an entity affiliated to the Ministry of Agriculture and

Rural Development.

THE DELIMITATION of the ZIDRES will be

established by the National Government through the

CONPES document1.

THE APPROVALfor each of the ZIDRES will be made by decree through

the Council of Ministers.

1. The National Council for Economic and Social Policy (CONPES) is a governmental advisory council on economic and social development, and is the one responsible for studding and recommending general policies in these areas.


HOW WILL THIS ZONES BEIDENTIFIED AND DEFINED?

ARE PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS AUTHORIZED FOR INVESTMENT?

It is authorized. It also authorizes concessions for infrastructure development and the necessary utilities for the agroindustrial development of these areas.

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Yes, the limitations are listed below:

ARE THERE ANY LIMITATIONS FOR INCORPORATING A ZIDRES?

• THEY CAN NOT BE INCORPORATED in territories declared as indigenous reservations, peasant reserve zones and titled collective territories. Without prejudice for obtaining permission from the authorities that represent it, the prior consultation procedure must be exhausted.

• A ZIDRES CON NOT BE INCORPORATED in territories delimited as strategic ecosystems, parks, mountains and wetlands.

• CONTRACTS CAN NOT BE ENTERED into in the denuded lands, the ones affected by land restitution and ethnic territories.

• AS FOR THE NON-OCCUPIED PROPERTY OF THE STATE, the interested parties may request a lease on these assets to the National Government. The term of these contracts will be determined by the developed project production cycle and the payment regarding the lease will be donated to the Rural Development Economic and Investment Fund.

• THE BILL WILL NOT LIMIT ACCESS to the land because it is not a law regarding non-occupied property of the State.


Finally, it is important to point out that in order to ensure a sustainable

management of the production forests, the development of

agricultural and livestock industries and employment stability, will be

created in the potential production areas, in the scientific, technological

and innovation centers. This task will be in charge of the State, the corporations, the education and

training institutions.

zidres eng 2016

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