Opening the hearings, Committee Chairman Hryhorii Kaletnik drew attention to the importance of agrarian education in Ukraine, "where the agricultural
sector is indispensable for the formation of the gross domestic product." The speaker informed that 11 higher
education establishments of agrarian education in Ukraine had a status of the
national ones.
Dwelling upon the scientific capacities of this sector, the People´s Deputy stated that the agricultural scientific establishments conducted research on more than 100 thousand hectares of land, 800 research departments operated at the place of production, 95 research associations were functioning.
H. Kaletnik focused on the legislative support of the agrarian science and education. Thus, the subject Ministry has developed a draft Concept of Reforms and Development of Agrarian Education and Science in Ukraine that fully complies with the strategic areas of the Economic Reforms Program for 2010-2014, and the President´s Decree of 30.09.2010 "On Actions to support Priority Development of Education in Ukraine." The subject parliamentary committee is working upon the legislative acts to support development of education and science in the national agricultural sector.
The participants of the hearings declared that research is an integral component of the agrarian higher education establishments. The system of the agrarian higher education establishments includes 14 research institutes, 67 domain-specific laboratories, 400 departments at the place of production, and consultation services for the agricultural producers.
The participants of the hearings developed the recommendations, whereby the President of Ukraine is recommended to consider whether the agrarian higher education establishments can be subordinate to the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine.
The Verkhovna Rada is recommended to scrutinize the amendments to the Law "On Higher Education."