eunite:AgriBusiness

eunite:AgriBusiness is part of eunite:Uniting Cyprus for Business, an initiative funded by the EU Aid Programme for the Turkish Cypriot community. Our mission is to strengthen Turkish Cypriot agriculture by fostering knowledge transfer, innovation, and market integration through the establishment and implementation of an Agriculture Knowledge and Innovation System (AKIS).

Our mission

We support farmers, fishers, advisors and agribusinesses by providing:

Support for the establishment and effective functioning of a robust Agriculture Knowledge and Innovation System (AKIS) in the TCc.
Training and Advisory Services to improve skills and resilient production practices.
Research and Demonstration activities showcasing innovative and sustainable solutions.
Support for High-Potential Value Chains to boost competitiveness and trade including actions to increase the quantity and quality of small ruminants milk in the context of the Halloumi/Hellim PDO Quality Scheme.
Support for collaborative innovation partnerships and bicommunal cooperation across Cyprus.

Project duration: 48 months

Budget: € 6.7 Million

Implemented by GIZ International in partnership with Sustainable Food Systems Ireland (SFSI)

Who can benefit from eunite:AgriBusiness?

Farmers, farmer organizations, fishers, advisors, researchers, education and academic bodies, SME’s, NGO’s, chambers and other agriculture and rural development actors who are willing to engage in active dialogue, innovative partnerships and projects, and knowledge co-creation initiatives can benefit from eunite:AgriBusiness.

What are the benefits of eunite:AgriBusiness?

If you seek to enhance agricultural productivity, adopt more sustainable production and fishing practices, benefit from strengthened food value chains, and explore opportunities in Green Line trade and further EU integration, then eunite:AgriBusiness is the ideal platform to support your goals.

Benefit from eunite:AgriBusiness Advisory Services

eunite:Agribusiness advisory services offer practical, tailored support designed to help stakeholders adopt innovations in technology, techniques, processes, and practices to improve competitiveness and achieve sustainable growth.

Our approach is participatory and needs-driven: we work with the community to identify challenges and provide concrete, actionable solutions.

Any stakeholder in the agriculture, fish and food value chains — from farmers, fishers and advisors to policymakers, researchers, or producer organizations — can benefit from these services.

A wide selection of information is already available in our AKIS library. Start there to find what you need.

Need further advice? Request your services here

A colleague from the eunite Programme will contact you shortly.

AKIS library

Access our trainings

eunite:AgriBusiness offers Vocational Education Training (VET) in agriculture, fisheries and rural entrepreneurship among others, to strengthen practical skills, foster innovation, and support sustainable growth in the Turkish Cypriot community.

Our training programmes cover topics such as modern farming, sustainable fisheries, agri-food processing, digital tools, and rural business development. Open to farmers, fishers, cooperatives, SMEs, youth, women entrepreneurs, advisors, and rural stakeholders, the courses are delivered by specialists through workshops, demonstrations, and field visits.

Explore our training catalogue for details on programmes, topics, dates, duration, and locations, and apply directly online.

Check out our training catalogue

Wish to attend a specific course? Send your request through our contact form, and a colleague from the eunite Programme will contact you shortly.

Bize ulaşın

What is AKIS and why is it important?

AKIS stands for Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation Systems. It is a network of people and organizations —farmers, fishers, advisors, researchers, private sector actors, NGOs and policymakers — that produce, share and apply agricultural knowledge and innovations. AKIS connects on-farm and fleet experience with scientific research and advisory services so that technologies, practices and policies are adapted to local needs and conditions.

AKIS improves access to relevant information, strengthens collaboration and supports learning and innovation. It helps increase farm productivity, resource efficiency and climate resilience, while promoting sustainable competitiveness, food security and rural development.

By joining AKIS you can:

take part in discussions and build collaborative partnerships.
access research and innovation activities.
receive tailored training and advice.

How to join eunite AKIS Network?

The eunite AKIS Network is the gateway to access the benefits offered by the AKIS. The Network forms the basis for all eunite:AgriBusiness initiatives. Join the eunite AKIS Network and become part of a community. Membership is free of charge.

How It Works

Step 1: Become a member

Step 2: Participate in AKIS Thematic Initiatives

Propose new or join existing thematic working groups to learn, share experiences, and explore new techniques, technologies, or farming /fishing practices that can improve productivity, resilience and sustainability.

Step 3: Get Support for Your Idea

eunite:AgriBusinesss supports the best innovative proposals through tailored advice, training, research opportunities and hand-on support through exchange and cooperation.

Building Partnerships and Fostering Bicommunal Cooperation

eunite:AgriBusiness prioritizes the development of strategic partnerships and bi-communal cooperation to foster collaboration, mutual understanding, and sustainable agricultural practices. By bringing together key stakeholders, these partnerships aim to

Leverage local agricultural expertise to enhance knowledge exchange and innovation;
Facilitate technology transfer to improve productivity and sustainability;
Support joint initiatives that address shared challenges and create new opportunities.

eunite:AgriBusiness strengthens resilience in food systems through inclusive cooperation and contributes to island-wide socio-economic development. This ensures more competitive and sustainable agricultural and fishing sectors and rural development in Cyprus.

FAQs

AKIS (Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation Systems) is a network of people and organisations that includes farmers, fishers, researchers, advisors, NGOs, and agribusinesses that co-create and share knowledge. The system supports the adoption and application of innovative solutions to local challenges and conditions, making agriculture, fisheries and rural development more competitive, sustainable, and resilient.

One of the key agri-value chains supported by the eunite Programme is small ruminant dairy production.

Sustainable Food Systems Ireland (SFSI) provides specialist economic and market systems support within this sector. eunite works with key sector actors across the value chain, from farmers to milk collection, processing, and related support and services. It identifies opportunities to address constraints affecting value chain performance and co-designs targeted interventions with relevant partners that stimulate the changes required to address these constraints.

The eunite Programme focuses in particular on the factors that determine farm-level profitability, including feed costs, fertility levels, and lamb and kid mortality. It also addresses the feed and forage supply system, incentives for high-quality milk production, cold chain integrity, market access, market development, and overall sector sustainability from both an economic and environmental perspective.

The eunite Pilot Breeding programme is an intervention under eunite:AgriBusiness designed to strengthen sheep and goat production in the Turkish Cypriot community by improving the genetic quality, productivity, and resilience of small ruminant herds. It has a strong link to the sustainability of the dairy sector and the Halloumi/Hellim PDO scheme.

In practical terms, eunite works with selected pilot farms to gather genetic performance data from sheep and goats, and assess their strengths and weaknesses against economically important traits (fertility, weight gain, milk yield etc.). As more genetic and performance data become available, farmers can identify better animals for breeding based not just on appearance, but also on their genetics and pedigree. This helps sheep and goat farmers make better decisions when choosing rams, bucks, and replacement females. The breeding programme is science-and-data based. Over the current programme period, the project will collect 10,000 tissue samples from sheep and goats for genetic testing. A new breeding programme database has been developed, and genetic evaluation is supported by Sheep Ireland.

The intervention aims to ensure that the TCc has best-in-class genomic-based sheep and goat breeding programme. Higher-performing animals support increased productivity, higher farm profitability, and increased supply of sheep and goat milk.