Hungary’s new government has suspended a subsidy programme that helped farmers in Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Republika Srpska and Brčko District purchase agricultural machinery and equipment manufactured in Hungary.
The BTP-26 programme was part of a €100 million support package announced in 2022 by former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and Milorad Dodik, the political leader of Bosnia’s Serbs.
The decision was made public through a statement by the Progressus Foundation for Sustainable Development, which administered the programme in Republika Srpska.
According to the foundation, the Hungarian government adopted Decision No. 2088/2026, revoking an earlier decision, No. 2372/2025, which had authorised grants under the scheme. As a result, Progressus announced that it was terminating the BTP-26 public call.
The application process opened on March 13, 2026, but was closed just five days later due to high demand. The foundation said it had received 1,025 applications from farmers in Republika Srpska and Brčko District.
Under the scheme, eligible farmers could receive grants ranging from €2,500 to €25,000 to purchase Hungarian-made agricultural machinery, equipment and tools. Beneficiaries were required to finance at least 30 percent of the investment themselves.
According to Radio Free Europe, Hungary spent more than €28 million on the programme during its first two rounds, held in 2022 and 2023. Farmers contributed at least an additional €12.9 million from their own funds.
End of a programme linked to Orbán and Dodik
The subsidy scheme was one of the main examples of economic cooperation between Orbán’s former government and the leadership of Republika Srpska, politically headed by Dodik.
Through the programme, farmers in the Serb-dominated entity could purchase Hungarian-manufactured machinery, with funding provided by the Hungarian state budget and implementation coordinated through the Budapest-based CED development network.
The suspension follows a change of government in Hungary after the April 12, 2026 elections, which brought an end to Orbán’s long period in power.
However, the new government has not publicly provided a detailed explanation for its decision.
Radio Free Europe reported that it had received no response from the Hungarian government, CED or the Progressus Foundation regarding the reasons for the suspension, whether the programme could be resumed, or what would happen to the remaining funds from the €100 million package.
It remains unclear whether the wider financial package will also be cancelled. The decision announced so far specifically concerns the agricultural subsidy programme for 2026, and there has been no confirmation that the entire €100 million commitment has been withdrawn.
