On November 13, 2023, two employees of the municipality of the Ukrainian city of Nizhyn will come to Riga for practical training as part of the Riga Investment and Tourism Agency project in Ukraine, "The Bridge of Friendship Riga–Nizhyn". The training will be related to EU project management, and special attention will be paid to educational projects. The said employees of the Nizhyn municipality will be undergoing their studying in Riga until November 21, 2023, when they will head back to Ukraine to apply and pass on the knowledge they acquired in Riga to their colleagues.
The aim of the project "The Bridge of Friendship Riga–Nizhyn" is to provide psycho-emotional and informational assistance to Ukrainian educators and municipal employees from the city of Nizhyn, Chernihiv region, to help them survive the consequences of Russian military aggression, share experiences, and prepare the employees of educational and municipal institutions for submitting projects to the European Union.
As mentioned, on February 24, 2022, the Riga City Council pronounced a declaration condemning the Russian Federation's military aggression and large-scale invasion of Ukraine. The city of Riga has provided various support to Ukraine and Ukrainian civilians who have applied for asylum in Riga in particular. This project is an understandable continuation of Riga’s assistance to Ukraine.
The funding of the "The Bridge of Friendship Riga–Nizhyn" project was obtained in the grant project competition “Support for Development Cooperation Projects in recipient countries designated by the Republic of Latvia” organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Latvia. It is implemented in cooperation with the Riga Support Center for Ukrainian residents, the municipality of Nizhyn City Council, and the Department of Education, Culture and Sports of the Riga City Council. The project’s activities will continue until November 2024.