Orbán cabinet admits to using misleading tactics to secure EU funds

In a podcast, former Hungarian President Áder János and Agriculture Minister István Nagy revealed Hungary’s tactics for securing EU funds for climate adaptation, repurposing them for irrigation.

Hungary’s water crisis

While Hungary battles severe flooding in the Danube Valley, much of the country still suffers from drought, Telex writes. The government has long promoted the need to store more water, but progress remains slow. Agriculture, being heavily affected by drought, was a focal point of Áder’s interview with Nagy. Following his presidency, Áder turned to environmental advocacy through his Kék Bolygó Foundation (Blue Planet Foundation). In the podcast, he and Nagy discussed recent floods and then shifted the conversation to drought management.

EU funding: irrigation challenges

Nagy mentioned that the EU does not support irrigation projects financially. When Hungary applied for EUR 1 billion under the EU’s long-term budget, the request was rejected due to a rule protecting drinking water sources.

Áder highlighted that irrigation could be developed using retained or surface water, rather than drinking water. Nagy explained that Hungary adjusted its approach, no longer referring to “irrigation” but to an “ecological water replenishment system.” Áder humorously suggested that the term “biodiversity” works well with EU institutions. This change in terminology helped Hungary secure funds from the Environmental and Energy Efficiency Operational Program Plus (Környezeti és Energiahatékonysági Operatív Program Plusz, Kehop).

Kehop wasn’t designed for irrigation projects but for climate adaptation and water conservation. Although water storage for irrigation can have ecological benefits, it’s a stretch to align it with Kehop’s objectives. However, other funds, like the Common Agricultural Policy (Közös Agrárpolitika, KAP), do support irrigation. In July, Nagy announced that over 1,200 irrigation projects had received EU funding through the Ministry of Agriculture.

Blurring the lines between goals

Some projects, such as water replenishment plans for areas like Homokhátság and Nyírség, mix ecological goals with economic ones. Áder and Nagy demonstrated how infrastructure projects can be framed as environmentally friendly, even when they don’t strictly align with climate adaptation.

This shift in terminology isn’t new. A 2019 law on irrigation communities now refers to them as sustainable water management communities. While the change in language signals a shift towards sustainability, it doesn’t guarantee that irrigation projects are truly environmentally sustainable. Hungary’s Recovery and Resilience Plan also reframed irrigation systems as water replenishment systems in later drafts.

Conclusion

Despite these efforts, not all “greenwashed” projects pass EU scrutiny. As one source of Telex noted, “None of the projects labelled as green under the Recovery and Resilience Facility passed the EU’s approval, causing a significant loss of EU funding for Hungary’s water management sector”.

The Ministry of Agriculture has yet to respond to inquiries about the podcast remarks and whether such tactics may be harmful to genuine environmental efforts.

Find the interview below (unfortunately, there are no English subtitles):

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Featured image: depositphotos.com

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