At the sidelines of the U.N. summit on the Millennium Development Goals in New York, European Commissioner for Development Andris Piebalgs and UNESCO signed a 1 million euros (USD1.3 million) agreement for an expert facility aimed at supporting good governance at the global cultural sector.
The facility will allow developing countries to tap experts’ knowledge on developing and implementing sustainable and effective cultural policies, according to an EU news release.
Meanwhile, a high-speed internet network for research and education was launched Sept. 21 in Kyrgyzstan in a bid to give researchers in Central Asia better access to resources they need to produce higher caliber studies.
The Central Asia Research and Education Network is cofunded by the European Commission’s Aid Cooperation Office, which supplies 80 percent or 5 million euros of the initiative’s total 3.25 million budget. The remaining budget is funded by beneficiary Central Asian countries on a cost-sharing basis.
“This project will facilitate and improve work of more than 500 000 researchers in Central Asia. Supporting high education and internet connection is an investment to shape [a] better future [for] Central Asia’s innovation centers. I’m confident that EU aid will have a high impact on the economic growth of the countries,” Piebalgs has said of the initiative.
Neelie Kroes, the European Commission’s vice president for digital agenda added that the project will help reduce the digital divide in Central Asia and better connect the region with Europe and the global Internet infrastructure.
Devex News – live breaking news coverage of the Millennium Development Goals and the Sept. 20-22 U.N. MDG summit in New York.
