EU will allocate EUR 30.86 million in 2011-2013 to help institutional strengthening of number of Georgian state agencies, the Georgian government said on Saturday.

State Minister for Euro-Atlantic Integration Giorgi Baramidze and head of EU delegation to Georgia Per Eklund signed a memorandum of understanding on this EU-funded Comprehensive Institutional Building Programme on October 1.

According to the EU delegation, the project will target those state agencies, which play “a key role” in negotiations on Association Agreement between EU and Georgia, including the National Service for Food Safety, Veterinary and Plant Protection, the Education Accreditation Centre and the National Agency for Standards, Technical Regulations and Metrology. The project also targets Chamber of Control, Parliament and Public Defender’s Office.

Georgia and EU launched Association Agreement talks in mid-July, 2010, when EU foreign policy chief, Catherine Ashton, visited Georgia.