DUSHANBE, November 28, Asia-Plus  --  The CIS Interstate Humanitarian Cooperation Fund (IHCF) and UNESCO will sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) and the at UNESCO headquarters in Paris today, Asia-plus ahs learned from IHCF spokesman  Alexander Kalugin.

The memorandum will create additional favorable opportunities for the development of the mutually beneficial cooperation between UNESCO and the IHCF, for the implementation of the CIS joint projects in the fields of education, science, culture, information and mass communications, sport, tourism, archive-keeping and youth policy, Alexander Kalugin noted.

About 70 projects are to be implemented under the auspices of the IHCF in 2008.  Nearly 60 of them have already been put in practice, including 3rd Forum of Creative and Scientific Intellectuals in Dushanbe, tours of the first CIS Youth Orchestra, summer schools for young scientists and other events.

A memorandum of understanding will be inked by UNESCO Director-General Koichiro Matsuura and IHCF Chairman, Kazakhstan Minister of Education and Science Zhanseit Tuimebayev.

The IHCF was founded in 2006 upon the decision of the heads of government of 7 countries (Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Armenia). Azerbaijan joined the fund in June 2008.