Fiji-based EU Ambassador Wiepke van der Goot made his first visit to the Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia and Palau earlier this week, reviewing aid projects and discussing climate change and free trade negotiation progress.
Funding for the Pacific will increase by about 140 percent in the new five-year EU funding cycle, 2009-2013, going from $39 million euros ($50.7 million) during the last five-year period to $95 million euros ($123.5 million), van der Goot said.
It is increasing “because of the good performance of Pacific countries compared to other regions,” said EU development aid officer Malcolm Ponton.
EU also provides five-year funding packages to African and Caribbean nations. The three regions are collectively known as the ACP members of the European Union.
Funding to the Marshall Islands is increasing from 4.6 million euros ($5.8 million) to 5.8 million euros ($7.3 million) over the next five years. The new funding, as with the earlier funds, is largely focused on energy-related projects, mostly for home size solar and alternative energy.
In addition, the Ministry of Finance’s “National Authorizing Office,” which oversees EU funding, will be getting a boost in funding to strengthen its operation so that it will be able to “go and get funding” from various other EU sources in addition to the country’s basic five-year package, Van der Goot said.
