EU provides Kyrgyzstan with additional EUR 19.4 mln to support education and digitalization

Bishkek, Dec. 23, 2021 / Kabar /. On 23 December 2021, the European Union disbursed EUR 19.4 million or nearly KGS 1.9 billion for two budget support grants to the Kyrgyz government for the education sector and for digitalization, the Delegation of the European Union to the Kyrgyz Republic reported. In the education sector, the disbursement of EUR 7.4 million is the last payment out of EUR 32 million allocated for the budget support programme to help the Kyrgyz Government implement its Education Development Strategy during 2019-2021. The results are an Education Management Information System, an improved educational quality and student assessment system, better gender equality and multilingual education, and strengthened public finance management. The Ministry of Finance has earmarked the grant funding to education quality improvements, textbooks and Internet access at all schools. Regarding digitalisation, EUR 12 million has been paid to support the Kyrgyz Government’s Digital Transformation Roadmap during 2020-2023. The programme supported the Innovation Centre of Digital Competences under the High Technology Park, the Sanarip Aimak/E-Aimak system in all regions to provide e-services to urban and rural populations, Personal Data Protection through a newly established Data Protection Agency and cybersecurity in the country. The Ministry of Finance has earmarked the grant funding to software development and database maintenance in line ministries as well as fostering the digital economy across the country. The budget support programme is complemented by training programmes on digitalisation provided by EU member states to support the Kyrgyz national authorities in advancing e-governance and promoting transparency and accountability. Eduard Auer, the Ambassador of the EU to the Kyrgyz Republic, stated: “Digital transformation and an education system accessible for all are key priorities for the cooperation between the government of Kyrgyzstan and the European Union and reflect the strong commitment of the EU to support the Kyrgyz development agenda.” The European Union will continue to support those areas as part of the next four year Programme (MIP) for the Kyrgyz Republic with the three priority areas of governance and digitalisation, human development, and green economy.