UCCA receives $180,000 USAID grant for pre-election public information campaign (09/26/99)

UCCA receives $180,000 USAID grant for pre-election public information campaign

by Khristina Lew
Ukrainian Congress Committee of America

KYIV - The Ukrainian Congress Committee of America Inc. on August 10 received a grant for $180,000 from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to conduct a nationwide civic information program prior to the October 31 presidential elections in Ukraine.

The non-partisan program, titled "The Makings of a President," will empower Ukraine's electorate with a deeper understanding of the role of a president and will encourage an informed decision at the polls through radio and television public service announcements, civic information brochures, a website and focus groups.

"Informing Ukraine's citizens of their civic rights and responsibilities is important work. We are pleased that USAID recognizes this fact and is funding the UCCA's 'The Makings of a President' program," said Askold Lozynskyj, president of the UCCA.

The UCCA conducted similar public educator programs in Ukraine during the presidential and parliamentary elections in 1994 and the parliamentary elections in 1998.

The UCCA is one of four U.S. organizations to receive funding from USAID to conduct election-related programs. The other three are Freedom House, the International Foundation for Electoral Systems and Counterpart.

"The Makings of a President" program will feature five radio public service announcements and three television announcements that target the general voting population. The program also will produce two civic information brochures. The first will detail the platforms of all 15 candidates. The second will explain the role of the president according to Ukraine's Constitution and outline the responsibilities of a citizen in a democracy. The brochures will be distributed throughout the country and at institutions of higher learning.

In order to gauge the mood of the voting populace and fine tune the various components of the project, "The Makings of a President" program will convene eight focus groups in three cities in Ukraine.

All materials produced by "The Makings of a President" program will be available on the UCCA's website, http://www.ucca.org.

The UCCA is working in close cooperation with the Freedom of Choice Coalition for the duration of this program. Freedom of Choice is an umbrella group for over 200 non-partisan organizations conducting programs during the campaign period.

The Ukrainian Congress Committee of America is a not-for-profit community-based organization that has raised awareness about Ukraine and has represented the interests of the Ukrainian American community for almost 60 years.

Since 1992, USAID has provided over $1.4 billion worth of technical and humanitarian assistance in support of Ukraine's democratic, economic and social transition.

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