The opening meeting of the “Accelerating Agricultural Recovery for Sustainability and Mitigating the Impacts of Earthquakes Project” (FARMERS), co-financed by the Republic of Turkey and the European Union and implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, was held on March 27, 2026, in Gaziantep.
The meeting, which began with opening speeches, stated that the aim of the project is to build sustainable, inclusive, and climate-resilient agriculture in earthquake-affected regions. Two panels were held, titled "Resilience and Transformation in Agriculture After the Earthquake" and "Opportunities for Farmers and Planned Activities for the Provinces". During the speeches, the strategic importance of the Farmers Project in ensuring food security and modernizing the agricultural value chain in earthquake-affected regions of Gaziantep, Adıyaman, Hatay, Kahramanmaraş, and Malatya was emphasized.
The conference also detailed the project's two main components: "Capacity Building" and "Job Creation."
In the speeches given at the widely attended meeting, it was stated that the implementation of the "Public infrastructure investments in rural areas" measure under the IPARD Program would contribute to the region in the post-earthquake period.