MINSK, 2 February (BelTA) – Applications for the second edition of the competition of initiatives for local development under the project “Support to Local Development in the Republic of Belarus” closed at the end of January, BelTA learned from the project's PR specialist Nadezhda Sinelnik.
Initiatives taking part in the competition were divided into two groups: cluster initiatives and socially significant initiatives.
The organizers of the competition received 113 applications from 12 pilot districts: 37 cluster initiatives and 76 socially significant initiatives.
“We received many applications from Borisov District and Molodechno District of Minsk Oblast and Orsha District of Vitebsk Oblast. These were the top three districts in terms of the number of submitted applications. The largest number of cluster initiatives came from Orsha District, while Borisov District placed first in terms of the number of socially significant initiatives,” Nadezhda Sinelnik said.
According to head of the project Lyudmila Sokolovskaya, the competition is meant to support entrepreneurship at the local level. The organizers aim to involve socially vulnerable groups of the population in economic activity and provide a springboard for active entrepreneurs who have cluster ideas but lack resources for their implementation. “At present, we are analyzing the applications. Winners will be announced in March,” Lyudmila Sokolovskaya noted.
Applications were running from 15 December 2020 to 27 January 2021 in 12 pilot districts of the project: Bereza District, Kobrin District, Bragin District, Orsha District, Zhlobin District, Khoiniki District, Lida District, Borisov District, Molodechno District, Bykhov District, and Klichev District.
The project “Support to Local Development in the Republic of Belarus” is funded by the European Union and is implemented by the United Nations Development Program in association with the Belarusian Economy Ministry.
