On November 3 the Ministry of regional development, construction, and housing and communal services of Ukraine, Ukrainian association of raion and oblast councils, and Swiss-Ukrainian project “Decentralization support in Ukraine” (DESPRO) signed a memorandum of cooperation in support of activities of the central office for reforms.

On behalf of Minregion the memorandum was signed by the First deputy Minister of regional development, construction, and housing and communal services of Ukraine, Vyacheslav Negoda. “This is one of the documents, which allow to coordinate the activities of all supporters of decentralization in Ukraine, to join efforts for implementation of local self-government reform, to create capable territorial communities in Ukraine, and, finally, to achieve the international standards of public services provision”, he said after the memorandum was signed.

According to the First deputy Minister, regional offices for reforms, which have already proved their effectiveness for the process of capable communities’ formation, desperately need coordination, methodical, communicational, and expert support, especially, now, in the aftermath of the local elections, and in the face of constitutional changes.

“It is this particular kind of support that will be provided to regional offices and local self-government bodies by experts from the central office for reforms. In the first place, it will be targeted at assisting the amalgamated communities, in which the first elections have taken place and the first sessions of local councils are under way. These communities are undergoing serious transformations related to creation of new structures, budget formation, and resolution of a multitude of legal issues. That is why it is important to coordinate the activities (including legislative work, concerning support of amalgamated communities) at the level of the central office for reforms”, Vyacheslav Negoda noted.  

On behalf of DESPRO the memorandum was signed by Oksana Garnets, the manager of Swiss-Ukrainian project “Decentralization support in Ukraine” (DESPRO), while on behalf of All-Ukrainian association of local self-government bodies “Ukrainian association of raion and oblast councils” – by Yuri Andriychuk, chairman of UAROC Secretariat.