The decentralisation reform will still face some serious challenges, as its irreversibility is not yet politically fixed in the Constitution of Ukraine, stated Hennadii Zubko, Vice Prime Minister - Minister of Regional Development, Construction, Housing and Communal Services of Ukraine, in a live television broadcast on the 5^th channel.

“President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko has clearly emphasised that after his reelection, his first steps will be to introduce amendments to the Constitution on the legislative enshrining of the decentralisation reform and full transfer of powers to the ground. I consider such changes as consolidating the course of Ukraine towards NATO and the EU to be fundamental. This is a path that will change the country forever,” said Hennadii Zubko.

According to the official, Ukrainians who believed in the reform and united, feel the achievements of decentralisation due to many implemented infrastructure projects. And their number is already exceeding 11,000. At the expense of the state support and local budgets, new schools, kindergartens, ambulances, stadiums, ASCs, safety centres etc. appeared in hromadas.

“Ukrainians already have opportunities to really influence the local authorities, plan their hromada development, receive new quality educational, medical, social and administrative services, as well as not allow to stop the reform,” Hennadii Zubko emphasised.

The Vice Prime Minister also touched upon an issue of local budget increase. “When there is a state support and constant growth of own revenues, hromadas have the opportunity to plan and implement priority projects. Comparing the revenues of hromadas, in 2014 they amounted to UAH 70 billion, in 2018 – to UAH 234 billion, and in 2019 we count on UAH 291 billion. In terms of the state support – in 2014, UAH 0.5 billion were allocated to the ground, this year – UAH 33 billion. These funds are transferred by the state to the oblast level, and priority projects are identified locally due to elaborated development strategies. In this way we achieve synergies between the state regional policy and the regional development strategies adopted on the ground,” the official said.