Integrated Environmental Policies in Europe & CIS

UNDP supports Belarus agrotourism

UNDP Belarus has awarded microgrants to 12 community initiatives to develop agrotourism in the Belavezhskaya Pushcha region, a UNESCO World Heritage site on the Belarus-Poland border with Europe's only remaining lowland primeval forest.

Environmentally Sustainable Development in the Belavezhskaya Pushcha Region, a cross-border project sponsored by UNDP, aims to promote agrotourism as a means to encourage natural resource management and national traditions while at the same time providing income-generating opportunities for local communities.

The initiatives receiving UNDP financial support were selected for their innovative and viable approaches to developing agro- and ecotourism in the region.

"We proceeded from the premise that the project should contribute to conservation of bio-diversity and should safeguard historic, cultural and natural heritage of the region," said UNDP Project Manager Dmitry Frischin of the winning projects.

Winners include the owners of the Voronichi estate, who will open a museum on bee farming, while the Lesnaya estate will start a permanent exhibit of exotic mushrooms and plans. Grant recipients are commited to creating a welcoming environment for tourists, who will be invited to explore local traditions and will be offered the chance to take horse-riding, walks and bike tours of the most interesting cultural and natural heritage sites.

A workshop for grant recipients, entitled "Best practices of agro-tourism development in the Belavezhskaya Puscha Region" was held recently in Bialoweza, Poland. The Belarusian participants received the opportunity to become acquainted with different types of agro-estates and to exchange experience of receiving and providing services to tourists with their Polish counterparts.

"Thanks to the contest we have a real opportunity to translate our ideas into practice," said workshop participant Natalia Zemlyanik.

For further information, please contact:

Vladislav Khilkevich
Public Information Assistant
UNDP Belarus
+375 17 227 3817
vladislav.khilkevich@undp.org

Recent Articles

• Kyrgyzstan Goes Green With New Construction Codes
• Thoughts on human resources management
• Albania Now Mine-Free and Ready to Reconstruct Region
• UNDP Georgia's new Quick Capacity Assessment Methodology
• Tackling Rising HIV Levels in Russia, Central Asia