Ukraine – Alberta Relations

PROFILE  The former Premier Ed Stelmach was  During the same visit, Governor Alberta’s first Premier of Ukrainian Vyshyvanyuk, and Edmonton’s Capital: Kyiv descent. former Mayor, Stephen Mandel, Population: 45.2 million (2013 est.) signed a Memorandum of  In 2003, former Premier Klein received Understanding (MOU) for the City the first ever Hetman Award of Language: Ukrainian (official); Russian of Edmonton’s wholly-owned Distinction from the Ukrainian widely spoken corporation, Waste RE-solutions Canadian Congress-Alberta Provincial Edmonton, to assist the Government: Republic Council (UCC-APC) recognizing his Government of Ivano-Frankivsk leadership in enhancing Alberta- Head of State: President Petro Poroshenko with establishing environmentally (since May 2014) Ukraine relations. sustainable waste management systems in Ivano-Frankivsk. Head of Government: Prime Minister  2016 marks the 125th Anniversary of Ukraine Settlement in Canada. Arseniy Yatsenyuk TRADE AND INVESTMENT Currency: Hryvnia (UAH), RELATIONSHIP OVERVIEW  Alberta exported an average of CAD$1 = $7.92 UAH, 1 UAH = CAD$0.13  Alberta has had a long history of $17.1 million worth of goods to (July 2013) involvement with Ukraine and has Ukraine from 2008-2012. Alberta GDP: US$ 182 billion (2013 est.) contributed to building social, political top exports included machinery and economic reform in Ukraine. ($12.1 million), iron or steel GDP (PPP): US$338.1 billion (2013 est.) products ($1.5 million), meat  The Advisory Council on Alberta- (primarily pork, $1.0 million), and GDP Per Capita (PPP): US$ 7,490 Ukraine Relations (ACAUR), created in (2013 est.) motor and special purpose 2000, provides advice to the Alberta vehicles ($638,400). GDP growth rate: -1.3% (2009-2013 avg Government on its relations with est.) Ukraine.  Alberta’s direct imports from Ukraine averaged $4.5 million Inflation: 6.5% (2009-2013 avg est.)  In 2005, Alberta welcomed Lviv as its from 2008 to 2012, including iron newest sister province. and steel products, vodka and Unemployment: 7.2% (2013 est.)  In 2004, Alberta entered into a sister beer, and rubber. This figure does not include goods sold in Key Industry Sectors: coal, electric power, province relationship with the western Alberta that have arrived via ferrous and nonferrous metals, machinery Oblast of Ivano-Frankivsk, which was and transport equipment, chemicals, food renewed in 2010 for a further five distribution hubs in other processing. provinces. years.

DID YOU KNOW?  The commitment to explore areas of co-operation between Alberta and  Ukrainian independence in 1991 Ivano-Frankivsk was renewed by way followed centuries of foreign rule by of a Letter of Understanding (LOU) Poland, Austria-Hungary, Russia and that was signed during former

finally the USSR. Governor of Ivano-Frankovsk’s, Mr. Mykhaylo Vyshyvanyuk, official visit to Alberta in August 2013.

June 2014 | Input provided by Alberta Ministries of: Agriculture and Rural Development, Education, Energy, Enterprise and Advanced Education, Environment and Sustainable Resource Development

UKRAINIAN COMMUNITY IN  Russia currently builds North and advisor to Alberta Education to ALBERTA South Stream gas pipelines by- enhance cultural ties, support  According to the 2011 census, passing Ukraine to serve Europe curriculum development, and there are approximately 345,000 directly while Ukraine, thought to be promote Ukrainian language and culture. Albertans of Ukrainian descent. among Europe's largest shale gas Just over 29,500 Albertans deposits, tries to develop this  Privately-run heritage schools reported Ukrainian as their mother resource with the help from the have operated within the tongue. multinational oil and gas companies. Ukrainian community since the  Ukraine’s natural gas infrastructure is turn of the century.  Between 2008 and 2012, 1,178 in need of major modernization  The Ukrainian Folklore Program at immigrants from Ukraine chose costing around $4.8 billion in new the University of Alberta was Alberta as their destination, investments, according to a feasibility established in 1987. It acts as a approximately 60% of which were study ordered by Naftogaz of Ukraine. bridge linking Ukrainian and economic immigrants. Russia is pushing Ukraine to sell gas Western scholarship. The program pipeline infrastructure in exchange for  From 2008 to 2012, 883 provides financial and cheaper gas. temporary foreign workers (TFWs) organizational support to from Ukraine were issued a permit  Alberta-based exploration and Ukrainian institutions for projects to work in Alberta. production companies active in in Ukraine and encourages study Ukraine include Calgary-based of the vibrant Ukrainian-Canadian  From 2008 to 2012, 224 foreign Shelton Canada’s natural gas culture that has evolved in Canada students from Ukraine were issued development joint-venture with over the past 115 years. a permit to study in Alberta. Chornomornaftogaz. Alberta-based drilling and service companies that  The University of Alberta (U of A) ENERGY are active in Ukraine include Canam and Grant MacEwan University jointly formed the Canada Ukraine  Ukraine has modest oil and gas Services Inc. Research Team (CURT) in 2003 to deposits and, despite efforts to  The Canada-Eurasia-Russia Business collaborate with researchers and increase domestic supply, imports Association (CERBA) has been active policy staff at the Institute of around 230 K bbl/d of oil from in promoting Alberta-Ukraine Russia and Kazakhstan, and around business links in the energy sector. Special Pedagogy (ISP) in Kyiv. 1.6 Tcf of gas from Russia and Their efforts focus on improving Turkmenistan. education services for children EDUCATION with disabilities.  Ukraine’s proven oil reserves are  Ukrainian language and culture 400 million barrels (bbl) compared  In 2003, the Ukrainian Knowledge education have had a place in to Alberta’s 169.7 billion bbl (2013). Internet Portal (UKIP) Consortium Ukraine’s natural gas reserves are Alberta schools since 1902. The Association was formed to support 39 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) compared first provincial curriculum for Ukrainian language education in to Alberta’s conventional gas Ukrainian as a second language Alberta. The Consortium was introduced in 1956. reserved at 32.5 Tcf (2013). developed an online Ukrainian  Ukraine tries to become Europe’s  Ukrainian has been offered as a Learning resource for schools energy transit hub given its location language of instruction in Alberta called Oomroom as it serves as an important transit public schools since 1974. In (www.oomroom.ca). corridor for Russian oil and natural 2010/2011, twenty schools offered gas exports to Europe. Ukrainian language programming.  The U of A has had a student Eight hundred students were  Transit fees are a major source of exchange program with the Ivan revenue for Ukraine and gas price enrolled in an Ukrainian bilingual Franko National University of Lviv program and 278 students studied since September 2006. (and debts) is also a source of contention with Russia causing Ukrainian language and culture multiple gas supply disruptions to courses. Europe in the past.  Thirteen Alberta schools are

twinned with schools in Ukraine.  Since 2006, the Department of Education and Science of Lviv Oblast State Administration has

assigned a Ukrainian language

SCHOLARSHIP AND AWARD AGRICULTURE RECENT VISITS PROGRAMS  Alberta's recent agri-food exports to  August 2013: The Governor of  Alberta has two post-secondary Ukraine have included processed Ivano-Frankivsk, Mr.Mykhaylo scholarships with Ukraine aimed at animal feed and pork. However, Vyshyvanyuk, visited Alberta to faculty, institutional and student opportunities exist for Alberta sign a LOU with the Government exchanges: companies specializing in animal of Alberta, and a MOU with the genetics, farm machinery equipment, City of Edmonton. o The Alberta Ukrainian Centennial Commemorative Scholarships technology and seeds for sowing.  April 2013: Members of the established in 1991 to  In 2010 four universities created the Ukraine Juvenile Justice Reform acknowledge the significant Prairie Agricultural University Initiative Project (UJJRP) Judicial Working contributions of Ukrainian settlers in Ukraine (PAUIU) and visited several Group visited Alberta to learn in Alberta. cities in October 2010 and February about the Canadian youth justice 2012. Partners in the initiative are the system. o The International Education Award – Ukraine established in 2003 by Universities of Alberta, Saskatchewan,  June 2012: Justice stakeholders Manitoba and Grant MacEwan an endowment from Alberta from Ivano-Frankivsk visited Advanced Education and University. Alberta to learn about the Technology as part of the Canadian youth justice system. ministry’s commitment to CULTURE  October 2011: Justice international education. It is  In September 2006, Culture and stakeholders from Melitopol, designed to promote and Community Spirit signed an Zaporizia Oblast in eastern strengthen international agreement with Lviv, establishing a Ukraine, visited Alberta to learn relationships between Alberta and genealogical research service about the Canadian youth justice Ukraine. between Alberta and Ukraine which system.  These awards are offered to graduate provides a link between their archival  June 2010: The Governor of students from either Ukraine or institutions and record depositories Ivano-Frankivsk, Mr. Mykhaylo Alberta who are involved in a ($200,000 over 3 years donated by Vyshyvanyuk, visited Alberta to practicum, co-op, internship, research the Alberta government). This project attend the Canada-Ukraine project or apprenticeship program in was renewed in 2010 and will soon Business Forum. either country. embrace four Oblast archives in  By 2011, 24 graduate students from Western Ukraine. DIPLOMATIC REPRESENTATION Ukraine benefited from these awards  Alberta established formal relations by conducting their studies at Grant with cooperating museums and  The Ukrainian Ambassador to MacEwan University and the scholarly institutions in Lviv and Canada is Mr. Vadym Prystaiko. University of Alberta in the areas of Chernivtsi in the areas of folklore,  Canada’s Ambassador to Ukraine Special Needs Education, Speech- ethnography, and genealogy. is Mr. Troy Lulashnyk. Language Therapies, Disability  Since 1975, the province has owned Studies, English & French as a Foreign  Ukraine’s Consuls in Toronto, with and operated the Ukrainian Cultural Language, etc. jurisdiction over Alberta, are Heritage Village, a 130 hectare open- Mr. Anatoliy Oliinyk and Mr. Anton air museum east of Edmonton which Rybak. INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT portrays life in the early pioneer days of Ukrainian settlement in Alberta. It  Canada’s Honorary Consul in Lviv  Alberta’s Ministry of Justice and is Dr. Oksana Wynnyckyj. Solicitor General is involved in the cooperates with numerous Ukrainian

Canada International Development museums and academic institutions, facilitating various scholarly Agency’s (CIDA) Ukraine Juvenile Justice Reform Project (UJJRP) (2010- exchanges. 2015).  The Ukrainian Canadian Archives and Museum of Alberta (UCAMA), created  Ukraine has received funding from the in 1972, holds an extensive library Government of Alberta, through the and exhibits historical artifacts, Alberta Culture, for projects focused archival documents and photographs.

on health care, at risk youth and In all, there are six private museums youth capacity building. devoted to the preservation of  Between 2008 and 2013 Grant Ukrainian history and culture in MacEwan University, in partnership Alberta. with the Canadian Centre for Studies  WORLD-FM broadcasts across Alberta in Disabilities (Winnipeg), is delivering in many different languages, with the project "Inclusive Education for daily programming in Ukrainian. Children with Disabilities in Ukraine," funded in large part by the CIDA. The  Alberta is home of the only project entails working with ministries, professional dance company in universities, institutes for professional Canada, Shumka, which celebrated teacher upgrading, schools, its 50th anniversary in 2009. Shumka community non-governmental is world-renowned, and its tours have organizations and parent associations included performances in the opera to develop the capacity for Ukraine to houses of Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk, offer inclusive education schools and Kyiv, and Donetsk in Ukraine. classrooms to the public. For more information, contact: Alberta International and Intergovernmental Relations Phone: 780-427-6543 Fax: 780-427-0699 albertacanada.com international.alberta.ca