On September 4, 2024 the Safiany and Suvorove communities in Odesa Oblast signed five intermunicipal cooperation agreements with the support of the USAID HOVERLA Activity.

Safiany and Suvorove began their cooperation in 2020, shortly after their formation. Signing intermunicipal agreements was a logical step towards strengthening the partnership.

The communities have joined forces to improve the health of their residents, develop children's creative abilities, ensure the rights of people with special educational needs, preserve socially important archival documents, and provide care for the elderly.

Among other things, residents of the Suvorove community will receive medical care in the Safiany community, and children with special educational needs will attend the Inclusive Resource Center there. In turn, elderly people from the Safiany community will be able to receive social and household assistance at the Territorial Center for Social Services of the Suvorove community. Thus, intermunicipal cooperation will provide comprehensive support for all segments of the population in both communities.

Nataliia Todorova, Safiany Mayor, and Oleh Bosikevych, Suvorove Mayor, signed the agreements as part of a three-day training on intermunicipal cooperation organized by the USAID HOVERLA Activity in Odesa.

“Thanks to the USAID HOVERLA Activity and the Odesa Oblast Regional Development Agency, we signed agreements with the Suvorove community in signing agreements. For both communities, this is a very big step, because everything needs to be done within the framework of Ukrainian legislation. Today, more than ever, we need to lend a shoulder to each other, because our strength is in unity,” said Nataliia Todorova.

The USAID HOVERLA Activity helps communities join forces to achieve common goals. Intermunicipal cooperation between communities contributes to the development of territories, improving the quality of life of the citizens and strengthening local self-government.