U.S. LAUNCHES FUND FOR DEMOCRACY IN THE BALKANS

WASHINGTON, April 3 (Hina) - The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the German Marshall Fund of the U.S. (GMF) and the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation reported on Wednesday they would launch a new, US$25-million-worth initiative to support democracy in Southeast Europe. #L# The new project, called the Balkans Democracy Trust is a GMF project, made possible owing to the public-private partnership between the GMF, the USAID and the Mott Foundation. The Balkans Trust, whose central office will be in Belgrade, will start operating this summer and it will be active in Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro and Romania, the USAID reported. Almost two million dollars will be allocated annually as an award to civil groups, non-governmental organisations, local and regional authorities, educational institutions and the media which support local initiatives promoting communication between citizens and their governments. The project will also include donations for cross-border cooperation to support the political and social development necessary for the long-term stability of Southeast Europe, the USAID said. The USAID is the central agency of the U.S. government for assistance to foreign countries. The German Marshall Fund is an American humanitarian institution founded in 1972 with a donation from Germany and its mission is to encourage transatlantic cooperation. The Mott Foundation, founded in 1926, is a private humanitarian organisation which promotes a fair society. (hina) it sb