Tough choices

Turkey’s farms face reforms With a 2007 deadline looming, the Turkish government is desperately trying to overhaul the agricultural sector in time to receive structural funds from the EU. By 2007, the EU candidate country is expected to have a system in place to disburse some 9-10 billion euros ($11.4-12.66 billion) to both farmers and state agencies involved in agriculture. Efforts to transform the sector, however, are likely to have far-reaching and potentially serious consequences for Turkey, as agriculture continues to account for around one-third of employment and is particularly important in often-impoverished rural areas with little else in the way of industry.According to the most recently released figures from the Turkish Statistics Institute, 6.77 million workers, or 29.3% of the total Turkish workforce, were employed in the agricultural sector as of June 2006. Perhaps even more troubling, however, is the small size of Turkish farms, which limits productivity: 65%