A group of 70 Belarusians will visit Cardiff for five days on 28 August to learn about Welsh government and society. Wales was chosen for the visit so that the visitors could see how a devolved nation operates.
The visit is part of a EU funded programme Roots and Treetops and is being hosted by British Council Wales.
Head of education at British Council Wales, Chris Lewis, said: “Roots and Treetops aims to improve contact between Belarusians and Europe and to raise awareness of the EU, European societies and their values, while also improving the participants’ English language skills.
“We’re pleased that the Belarusians chose to visit Wales to see a devolved nation in action and we’ve had a great response from Welsh organisations keen to show how Welsh government and civil society work.”
The Belarusian visitors will meet representatives of the Welsh Government and visit the National Assembly.
The group will also visit Sport Wales and Chapter Arts to learn about how sport and the arts are supported in Wales. The Arts Council Wales, Sustain Wales, 3SC, the Welsh European Funding Office and the Wales Council for Voluntary Action will also be talking to the visitors about their organisations and life in Wales.
The group will be accompanied by a British Council film unit who are making a film about the Roots and Treetops programme.
These organisations are helping to host the Belarusian visit:
• British Council
• Welsh Government
• National Assembly
• Welsh European Funding Office
• Cardiff University
• Welsh National Museum
• Wales Council for Voluntary Action
• Sport Wales
• Chapter Arts
• Sustain Wales
• 3SC
• Wales Millennium Centre
• Wales Millennium Stadium
The Republic of Belarus
Belarus is located in Eastern Europe; it is bordered by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest.
President: Alexander Lukashenko
Capital: Minsk (1 million 901,1 thousand)
Population: 9 million 463,8 thousand
Major languages: Belarusian, Russian
For more information or to arrange an interview, contact Alison Cummins at British Council Wales 029 2092 4334 or alison.cummins@britishcouncil.org
The British Council is the UK’s international organisation for educational opportunities and cultural relations. We create international opportunities for the people of the UK and other countries and build trust between them worldwide.
We work in more than 100 countries and our 7000 staff – including 2000 teachers – work with thousands of professionals and policy makers and millions of young people every year by teaching English, sharing the Arts and delivering education and society programmes.
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