The Parkland area of Saskatchewan has long had ties to Ukraine, so it is not a huge surprise the City would welcome the opportunity to become involved in a partnership to help build economic development and better government in Ukraine today.
The City will be teaming up with the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), to support the implementation of the Partnership for Local Economic Development and Democratic Governance Program (PLEDDG Program).
After a unanimous decision by Council at its last regular meeting March 21, the City and FCM will sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on the initiative.
The partnership for Local Economic Development and Democratic Governance (PLEDDG) is a six-year, CAN $19.6 million dollar program, developed by FCM and Ukrainian partners and funded by Global Affairs Canada (GAC). PLEDDG began on March 27, 2015 following the signing of the national agreement.
PLEDDG aims to strengthen Ukraine’s municipal sector by increasing capacities in sixteen cities in four oblasts (Ivano-Frankivsk, Poltava, Vinnytsia and Zaporizhia) to advance local democracy and economic development, create a more enabling local environment for entrepreneurship and local economic development (LED), detailed a report circulated to Council.
The program is a timely one in the sense 2016, marks 125 years of immigration by Ukrainians to Canada. Saskatchewan at present is home to some 130,000 self-identified Ukrainians, with a substantial number of these residents living in the Yorkton area. In these past 125 years, Ukrainians have contributed to the framework of building our province, our city and country. The Saskatchewan government proclaimed “2016, the year of the Saskatchewan Ukrainian”, said Coucillor Randy Goulden at the meeting.
In September 2016, UCC Saskatchewan will be hosting the National Ukrainian Canadian Triennial Congress in Regina, culminating in a 125th Anniversary Gala Showcase. Invitations have been extended to high level Canadian Government officials as well as dignitaries from Ukraine to present at the Congress.
Also in May Ukraine Ambassador Andriy Shevchenko will be in the City for events, said Goulden.
The visit of a foreign ambassador would seem a major opportunity for the City, the region, and local business to start a process which might lead to direct trade between this region and Ukraine.
The already noted cultural connection should make it an easier partnership to forge as well.
However, such a high level visitation does not always mean more than some receptions, handshaking, and media photo opportunities.
Back in 2012 Johannes Vervloed, Consul General of the Kingdom of the Netherlands toured the region on a visit which included a brief presentation at a social in Yorkton.
At that time Vervloed said there was potential for co-operation between companies in the Yorkton region and those in the Netherlands, after he had toured several companies earlier in the day including Milligan Biotech in Foam Lake, and LDM Foods and Grain Millers at Yorkton, said the region has a lot of things going for it.
“We really have the feeling we’re in the heart of it,” he said, pointing to canola, potash and oil and gas. “… There is a lot of things going on in this part of the province.”
Vervloed said he has believed there are chances for co-operation, adding they have actively worked on “an inventory of these opportunities.”
That optimism never led too much in the way of actual trade between local area companies and the Netherlands, at least no deals of significance enough to warrant press releases about them.
So the arrival of Ukraine Ambassador Andriy Shevchenko in May will be an important visit given the connected history between his country and this region, but it might not open the doors we might hope it would in terms of growing a bigger economic relationship to the benefit of both.
