EUR 44.5 million – this is the total budget of technical assistance projects to be implemented in Ukraine under the International Climate Initiative. These are both new projects and those that were planned to be launched before the war or were temporarily suspended when the hostilities started. Currently, their activities are being reformatted in accordance with Ukraine’s new reality.

These urgent initiatives and deepening cooperation were discussed in Berlin during a bilateral meeting of a Ukrainian delegation headed by Deputy Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine Oleksandr Krasnolutskyi with representatives of the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection, the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), and the IKI Secretariat.

The German ITA projects will cover, in particular, support for Ukraine in implementing the Paris Agreement and adapting to the effects of climate change in the Black Sea region, establishing an emissions trading system, implementing best available technologies and management practices, developing a low-emissions policy, preserving old-growth forests in the Carpathians, and enhancing Ukraine’s ability to overcome the consequences of the war and integrate into the EU.

Besides, the parties discussed Ukraine’s accession to the Climate Club, which is currently being formed by the EU countries.

The German Government is also ready to help Ukraine with the construction of rehabilitation centers for animals affected by war, and the creation of ecoducts, similar to those built in Europe.

Indeed, such rehabilitation centers and infrastructure are already envisaged in Ukraine’s post-war recovery plan, which has been presented at the highest international political level on several occasions.

This time, the recovery plan and urgent problems were discussed in Berlin as part of an IKI Workshop on supporting green recovery in Ukraine through German-Ukrainian cooperation in the field of climate and biodiversity.

“Hostilities are also taking place in conservation areas of Ukraine. The war affects unique species of biodiversity. That is why the issue of building rehabilitation centers for animals is also relevant for us. We understand that the country should care not only about its citizens, but also about the conservation of wildlife,” emphasized Oleksandr Krasnolutskyi.

The Ukrainian delegation spoke about the damage caused to Ukrainian environment as a result of the war and the existing risks.

“In such a difficult time as today, we have not stopped our work in any environmental policy. On the contrary, we have intensified our efforts, including reforming the environmental monitoring system. It is important for us to collect all the information about our ecosystems and their changes. The Parliament of Ukraine has already approved in the first reading the relevant draft law, which completely reforms this activity in order to qualitatively monitor the state of all components – biodiversity, water, atmospheric air in Ukraine, etc.,” said Viktoriia Kyreieva, Director of the Department of Industrial Pollution Prevention and Climate Policy of the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources.

According to Oleksandr Krasnolutskyi, Ukraine is striving to apply the best practices currently available in Europe for reconstruction and development. Therefore, German experience and institutional assistance are extremely important.

Source: www.kmu.gov.ua