EAFRD guarantee fund for agriculture and agri-food businesses, Poland

This case study reviews the implementation of the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) 2014-2020 financial instrument providing guarantees to Polish farms and agri-food enterprises. The budget from the Polish Rural Development Programme (RDP) dedicated to the guarantee fund accounts to EUR 62.36 million and thanks to the expected financial multiplier of 5.8 times, this should result in a potential loan portfolio of EUR 361.7 million. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the financial instrument structure was revised in May 2020 to facilitate access to working capital loans supporting financial liquidity for the target groups. An interest rate subsidy to reduce the cost of working capital loans was also introduced under the instrument.

The case study shows how EAFRD guarantees used in combination with grants, also in the form of interest rate subsidy, can facilitate access to funding for agriculture and agri-food enterprises.

A Polish translation of the case study is also available.