More than 40 local initiatives implemented in the Vitebsk region under the EU/UNDP project
Over 40 local initiatives have been implemented in the Vitebsk region under the EU/UNDP assistance project. This was announced by the project manager Lyudmila Sokolovskaya at a regional conference dedicated to the results of the project implementation in the Vitebsk region.
Local initiatives under the project "Assistance to Local Development in the Republic of Belarus" for 2016-2018 were implemented in Vitebsk, Orsha, Senno, Polotsk, Tolochin, Liozno, Dokshytsy, Glubokoe, Miory, and Braslav districts. Of these, 31.7% of initiatives were aimed at tourism development, 19.5% at infrastructure, 17.1% were implemented in education, 9.8% in social services, and 7.3% each in economic development, health, and ecology. Their total budget amounted to 621 thousand euros. Lyudmila Sokolovskaya noted that the local initiative competition included two stages. In the first, all districts of the country participated, receiving 722 applications, almost one in eight of which was funded. Based on its results, 30 pilot districts (five in each region) were selected, which then participated in the implementation of the second main competitive stage of the project. They submitted 352 applications (almost one in two was funded). In total, across the republic, 243 initiatives were funded under the two competitions for a total amount of 3.5 million euros. Educational, cultural, sports, and healthcare institutions, as well as local authorities, showed the greatest activity among the winning applications.
"A significant aspect is the participation of partners. According to the project terms, co-financing from their side should be at least 10%. On average across the country, our beneficiaries were able to secure co-financing of 24%. On average, there were six partners per local initiative," noted the project manager.
She also emphasized the promising nature of territorial-oriented development (TOD approach) in the implementation of local initiatives. The importance of using the TOD approach for the development of specific settlements was also highlighted by Ivan Belchik, Head of the International Technical Assistance Department of the Ministry of Economy.
"The local population has received a tool that allows them to actively solve problems that are relevant to their territory by leveraging the potential of the state, local organizations, and gratuitous assistance," he emphasized. In his opinion, local authorities, who are best aware of the specifics of their district, city, or other settlement, should primarily use the TOR approach to solve important tasks and pressing problems, and with its help, they can develop their competitive advantages.
Ivan Belchik also noted that the "Lithuania-Latvia-Belarus" program is currently actively launching in the Vitebsk region, within the framework of which a number of projects have received funding. In addition, by the end of the year, another project to support small and medium-sized businesses is planned to be launched in Belarus, under which funding will also be allocated for the implementation of local initiatives.