Student Training In Canadian Parliament

November 18, 2008

This year, the fifth year student of the College of Romance and Germanic Languages Yaroslav Kovalchuk represented Ostroh Academy in Canada-Ukraine Parliamentary Programme.

22 Ukrainian students who took part in the yearly Canada-Ukraine Parliamentary Programme (CUPP) providing a good opportunity for undergraduate students from Ukraine to learn about the democracy in House of Commons of Canada returned to their home institutions. It was the fourth programme a student of Ostroh Academy had passed the selection process and succeeded. This year, the fifth year student of the College of Romance and Germanic Languages Yaroslav Kovalchuk represented Ostroh Academy.

As a rule, the Programme provides an opportunity for 20 undergraduate students from the leading Ukrainian universities to spend six weeks in Ottawa working as assistants in the office of the member of federal parliament and visiting the sessions of the House of Commons. However, political events in Canada changed this youth project. Couple of days prior to the beginning of the programme, Canadian Prime-Minister Steven Harper called an early election of Canadian Parliament. Consequently, the Ukrainian students could observe and participate in the work of election offices of the candidates of three leading parties, Liberal Party, Conservative Party and New Democratic Party, and also act as international observers at poll stations.

“Canada-Ukraine Parliamentary Programme  is an extraordinary educational project that enables Ukrainian youth to gain experience and acquaint with the work of democratic institutions of the other country on the inside”, shared his impressions Yaroslav Kovalchuk. “This project is just amazing since besides Ukrainians only the students of Canadian and American universities are allowed to take training in the higher legislative body of this country”, he added.