Board 22, May 18, 2006

Joint Statement

The Twenty Second Meeting of the Governing Board of the Science and Technology Center in Ukraine (STCU) convened on May 18th, 2006 in Kyiv, Ukraine; approving twenty-four (24) new regular, government funded scientific projects for a total of $1,953,497 and €2,124,820. The Governing Board also confirmed twenty-two (22) new Partner Projects valued at $5,804,742 and €108,520, and confirmed thirteen (13) Partner Project contract extensions valued at $1,855,399 and €11,243.

The STCU is an intergovernmental, non-profit organization created with the goal of aiding unemployed or underemployed scientists previously working on the development of weapons of mass destruction. It was created and is governed by the ‘Agreement to Establish a Science and Technology Center in Ukraine’, originally signed by Canada, Sweden, Ukraine and the United States. Subsequently, Sweden was replaced by the European Union; Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova, and Uzbekistan have also acceded to the agreement. The STCU finances projects that redirect the know how of the scientists, who were formerly involved in military programs, into peaceful sustainable civilian applications. Other than government funded projects, the STCU also works in a number of other spheres of activity: Matchmaking; Promotional Missions; Seminars and Workshops; Partnership Projects; Travel Grants; and Patent Support.

The STCU Governing Board meets on a semi-annual basis in order to determine the Center’s policies and funding for scientific projects. The STCU Secretariat, located in Kyiv, Ukraine, is the main body responsible for fulfilling STCU decisions and policies on a daily basis.

The total funding to date including all twenty-two (22) Governing Boards stands at approximately $142.6 million, with the donor countries contributing the following amounts: Canada - $3.3m, U.S.A.- $73.0m, European Union - $25.4m (€21.5m), Non-Government Partners Sector - $14.0m, Government Partners Sector - $25.9m and Other (Japan, CERN) - $1.0m.