Donors conference for formerly deported people of Crimea in Kyiv

KYIV, 6 December 2000 - The Government of Ukraine, the OSCE and UN agencies jointly organised an international donors meeting on humanitarian and development dimensions of populations integration in Crimea. The meeting took place on 6 December in the premises of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine. It was the 3^rd such donors conference, the last one took place in Kyiv in 1998.

The OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities, Max van der Stoel, who was one of the main initiators of this Conference, co-chaired the meeting. UN organisations and the Project Co-ordinator in co-operation with the relevant Ukrainian authorities had prepared the relevant documents.

The aim of the conference was to support the Ukrainian authorities in alleviating socio-economic problems related to the return and the integration of formerly deported peoples and their descendants in the Crimea by fund-raising for projects (mainly infrastructure, health, education) in their favour.

The representatives of the donor's community made pledges totalling about $ 3.5 Million. Additionally several contributions were announced in principal without specifying a sum due to pending decisions of the relevant authorities.

For more information, contact Gizo Grdzelidze, Senior Project Officer, 8/24 Dimitrivska St., 01054, Kyiv, Ukraine. tel.: (+380-44) 251 21 56 fax: (+380-44) 246 88 26 e-mail: osce@osce.kiev.ua