In a statement released on March 1, representatives of the leading agricultural associations in Ukraine appealed to the Acting President of Ukraine Oleksandr Turchynov to urgently adopt a number of laws to fight corruption in the agricultural sector of the country, reports Ukrainska Pravda, citing LigaBiznesInform.

According to the statement, more than a billion USD was spent as direct subsidies for Ukraine’s agricultural sector in 2013. With the average bribe set at 20%, losses from corruption are estimated to top 200 million UAH. The statement also points out that subsidies are given only to those businesses whose owner have been able to corrupt the appropriate officials.