EU to provide Ukraine grants worth over EUR 200 million for decentralization, assistance to business and public service reform in 2016

The EU will provide EUR 200 million for the support of various projects in Ukraine annually, and the support of the decentralization issue is the most important, the diplomat told Interfax-Ukraine. He also said the EU is supporting businesses and is helping Ukrainian manufacturers use their capabilities in entering European markets. The third direction is state service reform, purpose of which is to help it transition from state service working on instructions to state service working on projects, Tombinski said. The ambassador also recalled the macro-financial assistance that the EU has provided to Ukraine since 2014. The EU has already completed two programs for 2014 and 2015, in which Ukraine received EUR 1.61 billion, he said, adding that the European Union is working on a third macro-financial program. Tombinski said macro-financial assistance is closely connected to the IMF assistance to Ukraine. It has the same conditions for Ukraine, he said. The Verkhovna Rada needs to adopt a package of laws that are needed for cooperation with the IMF in the near future, and then the EU will provide assistance, the ambassador said. Tombinski said that the new program of macro-financial assistance from the EU is worth EUR 1.8 billion, and Ukraine has already received one tranche in the amount of EUR 600 million. He also said the EU and other member states have provided over EUR 242 million for the humanitarian area and assistance to the most vulnerable population groups since the beginning of the crisis.