The World Bank has approved a loan of $100-million to preserve cultural heritage sites in four Russian north-western regions dubbed the “Silver Ring,” the Moscow Times daily reported on December 9.
The Russian government will contribute an additional $150.5-m to the “Preservation and Promotion of Cultural Heritage” project, run by the Culture Ministry from 2011 to 2017.
The programme envisages that restored sites will have a snowball effect on tourism and related infrastructure.
The project will function in the Pskov, the Tver, the Novgorod and the Leningrad regions. The four regions are part of an ancient waterway route called “from Vikings to Greeks.” The area is rich with historic landmarks from as early as 10th century.
According to the experts, in the Tver region alone there are over 600 such places in need of maintenance.
The World Bank said that museums and other cultural institutions throughout the regions would also be able to apply for grants of up to $5,00,000 for smaller projects.
