‘Alternative Leader’ Wants to Have a Say in S.Ossetia Aid Programs

Dimitri Sanakoev, the Tbilisi-loyal self-imposed leader of South Ossetia, has accused his rival, South Ossetian leader Eduard Kokoity, of misappropriating funds allocated by western donors for economic rehabilitation projects in the conflict zone.

He said that strong civil control is needed to prevent the misuse of donor funds and also hinted that his administration will insist on being involved in the project implementation process.
 
“Kokoity’s government could again eat this money. Still, I call on the international organizations to continue the fourth program on economic rehabilitation of our republic. In order to ensure that the economic projects really serve the population’s interests, I offer the South Ossetian population to establish civil control over distribution of this money. Only in this case will we obstruct Kokoity’s corrupt authorities from misappropriating the money designated for the population and save the international program,” Sanakoev said at a news conference in the Georgian village of Kurta, where his administration headquarters is located.
 
At a donor conference in Brussels last June pledged more than 8 million euros in support of a package of projects for the social and economic rehabilitation of the region.

Since 1998 the European Commission has already allocated a total of EUR 7.5 million for economic and infrastructure rehabilitation programs in the South Ossetian conflict zone. The rehabilitation program is managed by the OSCE and implemented by the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) and UN Development Programme (UNDP).

These four international organizations have been cooperating with the Georgian government and the South Ossetian side within the framework of a joint Steering Committee to implement rehabilitation projects on the ground.

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