Opinions & Interviews

Call to harness full potential of EU-Belarus cooperation

VITEBSK, 27 November (BelTA) – The potential of cooperation between the EU and Belarus is great, Dirk Schuebel, Head of the European Union's Delegation to Belarus, told the media ahead of the information meeting “EU-Belarus Cooperation: Vitebsk Oblast” in Vitebsk on 27 November, BelTA has learned.

The European Union and Belarus cooperate in various sectors. Today we interact  in energy, transport, environmental protection and implement projects to promote trans-boundary cooperation and to support small and medium-sized business. It would be great if we harness the full potential of our cooperation, Dirk Schuebel said.

The head of the European Union's delegation to Belarus added that he is in Vitebsk for the first time and is glad to see the city and meet with the local authorities. I think that we still know little about each other. Familiarization is one of the goals of my visit, he added.

Opening the information meeting, Dirk Schuebel emphasized its importance for all the stakeholders. Today we are going to lay out various ways of developing cooperation between the European Union and Belarus. We hope our meeting will lay the foundation for new partnerships. We also hope for an open exchange of opinions with the authorities, representatives of business and public organizations of Vitebsk Oblast on the future of the relations and cooperation between the European Union and Belarus, Dirk Schuebel said.

Dirk Schuebel emphasized the importance of participation in European projects for small and medium-sized business. We support small and medium-sized companies because we believe that this sector helps diversify the economy. In Germany, SMEs account for 93% of GDP. I do not say that it should be like this everywhere, but the strengthening of the sector will definitely help the economy, he said.

According to Vitebsk Oblast First Vice Governor Oleg Matskevich, many organizations in Vitebsk Oblast are eager to expand cooperation with the EU countries. This can be explained by the region’s favorable geographic position. The region borders on Latvia and Lithuania, the EU members, on one side and Russia on the other. “We can develop cross-border cooperation with European countries and serve as a bridge in relations with the Eurasian Economic Union,” Oleg Matskevich said.

According to the first vice governor, since 2015 Vitebsk Oblast has stepped up ties with European organizations and banks in such sectors as utility services, environmental protection, conservation of biological diversity, emergency management, development of border customs infrastructure. He added that the region is also home to a number of private companies that have already proved their worth for the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and has been attracting European resources for the implementation of their projects. Vitebsk Sawmill and Polymerconstruction are the biggest of them.

“Regional universities get gradually involved in cooperation as part of not only educational programs but also R&D, technology parks and industry laboratories. Each of them has a specialization,” he said. “We would like the European Union and UNDP to support us across such important areas as Industry-4 and Digitalization of the Economy,” added Oleg Matskevich. At the same time he noted that the range of cooperation between Vitebsk Oblast and the EU Delegation to Belarus is much wider. The most important thing is to involve as many local government agencies, public organizations, educational institutions, sports, culture and healthcare organizations as possible in order to develop and then implement the region's most important projects with a view to improving the quality of life of citizens, regardless of their place of residence, age and social status,” Oleg Matskevich noted.

Berend de Groot, Head of Cooperation of the European Union Delegation to Belarus, gave an overview presentation of technical assistance projects in Vitebsk Oblast. The participants of the meeting also presented the projects implemented with the participation of the Polotsk District Executive Committee, the project “From an inclusive school to an inclusive city”, and also reviewed the results of the initiative “Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy” in Belarus and Vitebsk Oblast, the BelMed project and others.

Vitebsk Oblast is an active participant in projects funded by the European Union and aimed at sustainable development of the region in tourism, energy efficiency, green economy, healthcare and social integration, environment, and entrepreneurship. In terms of the number of cities that have joined the Covenant of Mayors, the region is the leader in the country. Eleven towns have joined the European initiative on climate and energy: Braslav, Verkhnedvinsk, Vitebsk, Gorodok, Glubokoye, Dokshitsy, Novopolotsk, Orsha, Polotsk, Tolochin, Sharkovshchina.

Vitebsk became the third city to host regional information meetings on the initiative of the EU Delegation during the year. Brest hosted a similar event in March, and Grodno in October. The events bring together representatives of regional and district authorities, government bodies, enterprises and public organizations.

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