70 starostas of the the Swedish-Ukrainian project PROSTO “Support to Services Accessibility in Ukraine” partner hromadas have completed a training on tools to strengthen institutional capacity in their work. The two-day trainings took place in Lviv and Poltava in April 2024.

During the trainings, starostas from eight hromadas of Lviv, Poltava, Chernihiv and Kharkiv oblasts shared their experience and learned more about the following aspects of their work:

• starosta's mandate: budgeting and work with municipal property, enterprises, institutions etc.,
• legislative norms that define the legal status of starosta and outline the exercise of their powers,
• use of budgetary and non-budgetary funds for the development of starosta districts,
• gender integration in starosta's work: systems and tools for determining the needs of the residents,
• leadership skills in the work with the residents of starosta districts,
• effective organization: planning and reporting.

The participants also gained knowledge and practical skills in informing and involving residents in solving local issues, communication’s aspects when providing services to different groups of residents, as well as planning and developming the territories.

As part of the efforts to support and develop the institution of starosta in Ukraine, the PROSTO Project cooperates with 44 hromadas, where 550 starostas act.