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COMMENCEMENT OF PROJECT WORKS
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The Program Office was created in the premises of the EkologiaInvest Center for International Environmental Projects, Certification and Audit affiliated with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection of the Republic of Belarus. It should be noted that this organization began implementing the Program long before the official signing of the contract for Project works and consequently long before the date on which financing was made available. Thus, persons directly involved in the Project made necessary arrangements and organized the signing of the Memorandum (agreement) on the provision and use of targeted non-repayable financial assistance (grant assistance) directed toward implementing the Development of the Belarus Dnipro Basin Environmental Management and Control System Program, which took place in March 2000. In addition, they obtained the Economy Ministry’s approval of UNDP Project documents (under this Program and the GEF Regional Program), made necessary arrangements to form the Committee and hold its initial three meetings with the participation of IDRC representatives.
Since the commencement date of the Specialized Field Studies of the Belarus Dnipro Basin Water Quality Project being implemented under the Program could not be postponed because of the international scope of the Project and seasonality of such studies, the Office offered its support for the Project and started administering funds as early as September 11, 2000 before the contract was actually signed by the IDRC and the executing agency and funding was made available as noted above. Aside from this, pursuant to its goals and objectives, the Office made a rough appraisal of concepts and project proposals submitted under the Program, provided advice on how to bring them into line with the IDRC and UNDP requirements, prepared them for presentation and approval at the Committee meetings while continuing to administer Project funds and performing all above-mentioned duties in accordance with prescribed methods. Thus, by December 12, 2000, that is, before the contract signature date (6/02/2001) and the date on which Project funds were credited to the UN Representative Office account (15/03/2001) the first phase of field water quality studies had been completed and approvals had been obtained for financing concepts of several projects, namely, the Specialized Field Studies of the Belarus Dnipro Basin Water Quality (Phase 2), Creation of the Center for Automated Water Conservation Information Exchange, and the Development of the Geographic Information System for Managing Belarus Dnipro Basin Water Quality”.
It should also be pointed out that despite the lack of financing the Office kept operating and discharged its duties relying on its own resources and using available EkologiaInvest’s equipment and materials.
