Ambassador Hovdkinn is received by Sibiu Prefect Mr. Constantin Trihenea. Photo: EmbassyOn this occasion, the representatives of the Norwegian Embassy also took part in Sibiu in a bilateral workshop on lessons learnt and experience sharing in the implementation of the EEA Financial Mechanism and the Norwegian Cooperation Programme in Romania and Bulgaria.
Of the approximately EUR 100 million made available for Romania between 2009-2011, up to EUR 5 million have been granted to projects in Sibiu county, which makes the region one of the largest recipients of the Norwegian and EEA/EFTA funding. The programme included visits to projects in order to see and assess the progress in the implementation process as well as meetings with the project promoters.
The first visit was to the Open Air ASTRA Museum in Sibiu to see the project “Conservation and Restoration of the Ethnographic Heritage from ASTRA Museum – Sibiu Woods”, developed in partnership with SINTEF - Norway through a grant of EUR 2 461 888 under EEA Grants. The director of the ASTRA National Museum Complex, Mr. Olaru, together with his collaborators, accompanied Ambassador Hovdkinn and the other guests in a very interesting guided tour through the 96 hectare-museum. The delegation saw the considerable progress made in the implementation of the project, many restored wooden architectural heritage houses as well as the building of a new facility for the restoration and conservation of museum artefacts – a multifunctional conservation laboratory.
Director Cristi Gherghiceanu offers the delegation a tour of ADEPT Foundation's office and facilities in Saschiz.A second visit was paid to a Norway Grants 2 million EUR project, promoted by the Regional Environmental Protection Agency in Sibiu (REPA) in cooperation with the Norwegian Association of Local and Regional Authorities (KS). The project aims to improve regional-level waste management in Romania through a combination of institutional building, small-scale pilot project implementation and awareness raising actions.
Ambassador Hovdkinn also visited an interesting EUR 605 000 project developed by ADEPT Foundation and under Norway Grants in Saschiz (Mures county, 100 km away from the town of Sibiu) which focuses on sustainable production for small scale farming communities.
During his stay in Sibiu, Ambassador Hovdkinn also met the prefect, Mr. Constantin Trihenea, and talked about ways of fostering partnerships between entities from Sibiu and Norwegian ones.
On the 21st of April, the ambassador met the mayor of Sibiu Mr. Klaus Johannis and the discussions were focused, among other things, on the common experience of being European Cultural Capital, in 2007, when Sibiu enjoyed this status, and in 2008, respectively, when it was the turn of the Norwegian city of Stavanger.
Having in mind the good projects supported by the Norwegian funds in Sibiu, the ambassador expressed his confidence in a successful continuation of the cooperation with this area of the country.