February 4 2003, 14:30

80 pc of Russian farmers are in debt. Businessmen will have to wait 5 years

Debts of Russian agricultural producers to government and private creditors have reached a sum of 340 billion roubles ($10.68 billion). 80 percent of Russian farmers are in debt.

Russian government intends to allow postponement of settlements for agricultural producers for at least 5 years, and then to permit another instalment plan to expend the payments for several years more, Russia's Deputy Prime Minister, the Minister of Agriculture Aleksey Gordeyev has declared.

The main creditors of agricultural producers are commercial companies, not the government. The state has thus decided to shift the burden of farmers' debts onto the shoulders of businesspeople.

Mr. Gordeyev admits this, but he says that it is better to get the debts back from farmers "late than never".