Background

The dissolution of the former USSR in 1991 (itself the result of a decade of change, including the changes leading to the fall of the Berlin wall in 1989) has been a catalyst for far reaching change in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe and in the Commonwealth of Independent States. Despite many dramatic and welcome improvements in the region over the past twenty years, not all change has been positive. Wealth is increasingly unequally distributed; many countries in the region have problematic human rights records; and, war and its destabilising effects still casts its shadow over many countries in the region, whether directly or indirectly.

The former USSR itself has split into a mosaic of different countries including the Russian Federation, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and those new states to the east of the Caspian sea.

The Russian Federation, the largest country in the world by land area, remains the dominant power in much of Eastern Europe. Despite huge reserves of natural resources, income inequality in Russia remains problematic. Conflict continues in Chechnya. Russia remains a country in transition to a fully functioning modern administration and market economy: Ireland has been assisting in the transition process, including through participation in the Presidents’ Programme (formerly the Yeltsin Programme), which aims to train Russian Federation public and private sector managers in international best practice. Ireland is also assisting the process of police reform in the Russian Federation.

The former USSR was a multi-ethnic country. Its break-up into constituent parts has seen the question of respect for minority rights move up the agenda, sometimes violently, in the new countries of the region. Inter-community tensions have not been helped by widespread poverty, a general failure to diversify economically, environmental degradation (of which the continuing pollution of Belarus following the 1986 Chernobyl disaster is most symbolic), corruption and administrative weakness.

Irish Aid’s role in Eastern Europe

The Irish Aid Partnership Programme for Europe and Central Asia tackles poverty and assists with the transition to democracy in the region. Irish Aid focuses on projects that address poverty alleviation, human rights, governance, strengthening civil society and democratic transition. Particular attention is given to programmes targeting vulnerable groups, including the de-institutionalization of those living in mental health facilities and the inclusion of marginalized or disabled children in community based educational activities. Irish Aid’s principal partners in the region are international organisations such as the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) together with Irish and international NGOs.

In 2006 Irish Aid supported the First Step Foundation in providing medical, developmental and educational services to physically and intellectually disabled children in Georgia. This project has helped children develop coping skills for daily life to improve their health, educational, social and emotional well being.