ESTDEV and USAID forge stronger ties with new MOU for development cooperation

Estonian ambassador to the United States Kristjan Prikk and Christophe Tocco, the senior deputy assistant administrator for USAID’s Bureau for Planning, Learning and Resource Management, met yesterday in Washington, DC, for the signing. 

Estonia and the United States are committed to working with partner countries on sustainable development initiatives, especially in the areas of digital transformation and e-governance, cybersecurity, and entrepreneurship and innovation.

This agreement will strengthen development cooperation programmes in partner countries by allowing each of these agencies to leverage their country’s respective strengths in areas of shared interest.

Ambassador Prikk, who signed the MOU on behalf of ESTDEV, acknowledged USAID's active engagement and the impact of their development cooperation programmes around the world. By working together, ESTDEV and USAID aim to magnify their impact and achieve better measurable development outcomes.

The MOU is valid for five years and can be extended upon mutual agreement. 

It builds on the current successful cooperation of two agencies. ESTDEV has joined the USAID’s initiative with Ukraine to model e-government successes in more countries to build out and support digital public infrastructure. ESTDEV is also contributing to the m-mama digital health initiative in Kenya and the digital education and innovation programme in Moldova.