UN Assistant Secretary-General Udovicki participates in the 18th meeting of BSEC in Kyiv, meets Vice-Prime Minister Nemyrya and Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Khandogiy

17 April, 2008. Kyiv, Ukraine - Today UN Assistant Secretary-General and UNDP Assistant Administrator Kori Udovicki took part in the opening of the 18th meeting of the Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization and met First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Volodymyr Khandogiy.   

Also, this day Udovicki met Vice-Prime Minister of Ukraine on European and International Integration Grygoriy Nemyrya to discuss cooperation in the framework of UN Development Assistance Framework for Ukraine during 2006-2010. 

 Earlier this day Kori Udovicki  has held the meeting with Vice-prime Minister of Ukraine Grygoriy Nemyrya. The parties discussed bilateral cooperation between UN and Ukraine, in line with the implementation of the UN Development Assistance Framework for 2006-2010. They also spoke about UN-led assistance in Chernobyl-affected areas, international aid coordination, cooperation within the ‘Blue Ribbon’ Commission and discussed the possibility to hold an international regional climate change conference in Ukraine.

Hryhoriy Nemyrya hailed the importance of the UN Development Assistance Framework, signed for Ukraine for 2006-2010, which outlines the UN-led support in conducting institutional reforms, further development of civil society, poverty reduction and halting the spread of HIV/AIDS.  “Ukraine is willing to make all the best in order to implement the UN recommendations concerning economic, social, cultural and humanitarian problems,” he said.

The Vice Prime Minister informed Kori Udovički about Ukraine’s achievements on its way to closer integration with Europe and talked about the Government’s plans to establish a new agency to coordinate European integration process - under a working name of the National Agency for European Integration – to ensure most effective coordination of the Government’s actions in this regard.

In her turn, UNDP Assistant Administrator Kori Udovički appreciated the Government’s actions directed at reducing poverty and congratulated Ukraine on the country’s accession to the World Trade Organization.

At the same time, she reminded that during the UNDP-led International Conference on Poverty Alleviation, which was conducted on 16 April in kyiv, human development experts voiced their concerns that in Ukraine, despite robust economic growth which started in 2000, 28 per cent of people still lived below the poverty line of UAH430 (USD90) per person a month, according to official statistics. 

She also stressed on the necessity to cope with demographic problem in Ukraine, as over the past 10 years Ukraine lost 4 million people. Majority of them were men, according to the official data.   In Ukraine the worst situation is observed in rural areas, where almost 40 per cent of the population are poor.

As Kori Udovički said, the Government should continue its work to finish a number of proclaimed and much-awaited reforms, including pension system reform, national healthcare system reform, decentralization and restructuring of social benefits system. All these are exceptionally important and critical to poverty reduction.

UNDP Assistant Administrator Udovički told Vice Prime Minister Nemyrya that UN Development Programme in Ukraine was ready to offer its assistance within its key practice areas. Specifically, these include attracting financial and technical assistance, using the best international experience and best practices to create a more favourable environment for effective social and economic reforms in Ukraine.