Europese Commissie zegt 17 miljoen euro toe voor sociaal-economische projecten in Oekraïne (en)
Brussels, 31 May 2011 - Following his discussions in Brussels with First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine Andriy Klyuyev, Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy Štefan Füle i today signed a financing agreement providing a further allocation of €17 million to support community-based local development in Ukraine.
Commissioner Štefan Füle stated: ''Today we are launching a further €17 million of EU support to complement the €12 million already invested. The overall objective of the programme is to promote sustainable socio-economic development at local level by strengthening participatory governance and community-based initiatives throughout Ukraine. […] Deepening co-operation with the Ukrainian authorities is a top priority for the EU, but this has to extend beyond Kyiv and to touch the lives of Ukrainian citizens at large. On our side, we are ready to help and assist Ukraine, whenever necessary.''
The European Commission has allocated these additional funds to complement €12 million already dedicated to the Community Based Approach’s (CBA) successful first phase. The aim of the second phase of CBA is to promote sustainable socio-economic development at local level by strengthening participatory governance and community-based initiatives throughout Ukraine.
CBA Phase II will also allow for the development of local microprojects, notably in the areas of energy efficiency, health, water supply and the environment. CBA is implemented through joint management with UNDP, but is based on a “bottom-up” approach to project design.
At the signing ceremony, Commissioner Füle noted the successful outcome of the first phase of the Community Based Approach, including very concrete outputs (such as the funding of over a thousand micro-projects).
The Commissioner also underlined the contribution of CBA to building local governance, notably by involving local people in designing and overseeing projects and initiatives directly affecting their communities.
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