European Union framework for forestry support and its implementation in Latvia

The Paper covers an analysis of most significant European Union (EU) legal acts regulating financial support granted for private forestry over the period of 2014-2020, coherence to support measures implemented in Latvia for a certain period. The review consists of two main legal acts from the EU - Forest Strategy for forests and the forest-based sector and the EU regulation No. 1305/2013 of the European Parliament and the Council on support for rural development by the European Agriculture Fund for Rural development, while from the national perspective, the review was prepared for Latvia’s Rural development programme (NRDP) for the period 2014- 2020 and national regulations issued by the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Latvia. The paper focuses on the support measures intended to foster and develop forestry sector, evaluating priorities and expected results laid down in the EU documents, versus measures implemented in Latvia through the NRDP 2014-2020, related to national regulations and rules of the responsible state authorities. The analysis contains several groups of measures applicable for private forestry: 1) Information, advice, knowledge and efficiency; 2) Forestry activities; 3) Investments in forestry; 4) Nature care. Not all the measures which may be introduced according to the EU regulations No. 1305/2013 were implemented for private forestry support in Latvia, also several in the NRDP 2014-2020 affordable measures were not introduced practically till November 2017, but regarding those which have already been implemented, their impact on forestry development should be further estimated