Eurovision 2017: NTU meets with Kyiv City officials and Vitalie Klitchsko

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by Sanjay (Sergio) Jiandani November 17, 2016 9:24 pm 586 views

The Ukrainian national broadcaster, NTU met up with the Mayor of Kyiv Mr. Vitali Klitchsko and Kyiv City State Administration officials earlier this week, in order to discuss the preparations for the forthcoming 2017 Eurovision Song Contest. Many key factors regarding the upcoming song contest were discussed during the meeting.

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NTU’s Ms. Victoria Romanova and Mr. Oleksandr Kharebin had a meeting with the Mayor of Kyiv, Mr. Vitali Klitschko and City of Kyiv State Officials.

The City of Kyiv and NTU(National Television of Ukraine) are working together from strength to strength in their quest to organize the 2017 Eurovision Song Contest in the Ukrainian capital.

Mr. Vitali Klitschko (Mayor of Kyiv) met up with Ms.Victoria Romanova and Mr. Oleksandr Kharebin from NTU in order to discuss the ongoing preparations for the upcoming mega musical event.

Mr.Vitali Klitschko says:

The preparations for the 2017 Eurovision Song Contest  require constant team work from both sides in various ways and formats.  At the same time we need to coordinate our efforts so that next spring when we hold the song contest, visitors can appreciate not only the level of the organization of the  Eurovision Song Contest in Kyiv, but also the beauty and atmosphere that our city has to offer.

He recalled that the city authorities have allocated 50 million USD for the organization of the competition from the municipal budget (150 million has been allotted for the following year).

The Mayor of Kyiv also commented that one of the crucial issues afflicting the organization of the event is the appointment of a new Director General at NTU.

Most of the obligations, responsibilities of organizing the competition and providing training lie in the hands of NTU. I have already said and I repeat that the National Television in this situation can not remain without a leader, a responsible person. I appealed to the Cabinet, so that it look into the matter soon and appoint a new leader at NTU. You can’t delay this more. I hope that NTU will have a new General Director soon, so it can prepare and work on the competition.

The Mayor went on to say said that last week an entourage of representatives from the EBU visited Kyiv in order to check out the preparations for the forthcoming Eurovision Song Contest, they left satisfied after seeing the ongoing work and preparations so far.

The Mayor added:

Our foreign partners first arrived in Kyiv with not a very good mood because of all the negative information that had been spread  regarding the competition and that all was lost . I am pleased to say that after their trip to Kyiv, they changed their minds and went back home with a positive attitude. I talked with them, all is well,  there are thoughts of transferring the Eurovision anywhere else. It was a gamble. We have showcased ourselves as reliable partners. Kyiv is ready to host the Eurovision Song Contest at a decent level, thus focusing on the participating countries.
The mayor also mentioned that a total of 204 million viewers around the world watched the last edition of the Eurovision Song Contest, which was held in Stockholm.
Mr. Klitschko adds:
I am convinced that many viewers will watch the contest in order to see how the competition will be held in Kiev. So Eurovision for us is a great an opportunity to present and showcase our country and capital. Hosting Eurovision will also be essential factor for the development of  the tourism infrastructure in the city, thus attracting investment.
In comments to journalists the Mayor of Kyiv stressed that one of the key requirements of the Eurovision organizers is the question of security in the Ukrainian capital.
Mr. Klitchko goes on to comment:
We have allocated unprecedented funds for the program” Kyiv Safe Capital”. We will install 8,000 cameras to improve the security in Kyiv, I hope that all the activities related to the Eurovision Song Contest will held in a friendly atmosphere. However, the police will take all the required and necessary measures to ensure security in the capital.
The acting Director General of NTU Mr. Oleksandr Kharebin noted that the financial and legal issues concerning the organization and implementation of the contest in Kyiv had to be resolved. Speaking about the location of the 2017 Eurovision Song Contest Opening Ceremony he noted that the Mariinsky Palace could be the venue to host the event.
Mr. Oleksandr Kharebin says:

If the reconstruction of the Mariinsky Palace will be completed by April next year, there is a big chance that we will hold the opening ceremony there.

Check out a video below from the meeting between Kyiv City State Administration, the Mayor of Kyiv and NTU officials.

Preparations are currently underway in Kyiv for the 2017 Eurovision Song Contest, the City of Kyiv held a special press conference earlier this week in order to give a briefing on the latest updates, including expected tourist numbers as well as scheduled plans for the upcoming contest.

The 2017 Eurovision Song Contest is scheduled to be held on the 9, 11 and 13 May at the International Exhibition Centre in the host city of Kyiv.

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