At the beginning of each month, the Decentralisation portal summarises the Government’s and Parliament’s decisions concerning local self-government and development of communities. In January 2026, the most impostant decisions covered staffing rules, allocation of funds, support for recovery, integration of services in communities, international cooperation, and strategic planning.

Main regulatory decisions and documents

• The National Agency of Ukraine on Civil Service approved ‘Methodological Recommendations for Personnel Management Services in Local Governments’. These recommendations contain practical approaches to organising the work of such services, their structure and delineation of powers in human resources management in compliance with the Law of Ukraine ‘On Service in Local Governments’.
• The Government approved the allocation of an additional subsidy from the state budget to local budgets in the amount of UAH 2.95 billion, as developed by the Ministry of Finance. The funds will be directed to educational institutions, healthcare, and other socially important needs in communities.

Recovery, financial support and investment

• Communities will receive UAH 740.3 million for 119 recovery projects within the framework of assistance from the European Investment Bank; the funds will be directed to social and critical infrastructure: water supply, healthcare, and energy security.
• Local budgets will receive UAH 987.1 million as part of the Ukraine Recovery Programme for 2026. Support is provided to 71 communities, including those located in frontline areas.
• Communities will receive UAH 740.3 million for 119 recovery projects within the framework of support from the European Investment Bank; the funds are targeted at social and critical infrastructure, such as water supply, healthcare, and energy security. This is the next stage of financing within the framework of the Ukraine Recovery Programme III. A total of 119 projects are planned, of which 21 are in healthcare, 63 are water supply and sewage facilities, and 35 are projects to improve the energy sustainability of communities. The funds will be directed, in particular, to communities that have suffered the most damage as a result of the war.
• Local budgets will receive UAH 987.1 million under the Ukraine Recovery Programme for 2026. Support is provided to 71 communities, including those located close to the front line. This is another tranche of funds provided for in the Financial Agreement between Ukraine and the European Investment Bank ‘Ukraine Recovery Programme’ with a total amount of EUR 340 million. The subsidy is allocated to 71 communities, 31 of which are in the frontline regions of Dnipropetrovsk, Mykolaiv, Odesa, Sumy, Kharkiv, and Chernihiv regions. The funds will be used to restore and strengthen critical and social infrastructure.

Social policy and housing

Twenty-five communities from different regions of Ukraine applied to participate in a pilot project to create a municipal (social) rental housing fund. The project involves the construction of housing that will remain the property of the communities and will be provided at below-market rental rates. Such housing is primarily intended for internally displaced persons, veterans, large families, people with disabilities, as well as social and critical infrastructure workers. The project is coordinated by the Ministry for Development of Communities and Territories of Ukraine; the consideration and evaluation of the submitted applications complete the first phase of its implementation.

International cooperation and partnerships

• The Ministry for Development approved a number of international agreements and memoranda between Ukrainian communities and their counterparts in Romania, Poland, Germany, Italy, Norway, Australia, Moldova, and Finland. These agreements will facilitate the exchange of experience, project cooperation, and the development of specific initiatives.
• The selection of partner communities for the EU4Reconstruction Project begun. This initiative provides support in strategic, spatial, and budgetary planning for reconstruction, development of public investment management, and other components of reconstruction.

Strategic planning, reform, security context

• The Government approved the draft Law ‘On the Principles of Delineation and Distribution of Powers between Levels of Public Administration’. The document is intended to establish general principles for delineating the powers of local governments and executive authorities, including resource provision and specific features of implementation in different conditions.
• The procedure for developing and evaluating regional development strategies was comprehensively improved. The changes are intended to better synchronise strategies with public investment management, apply differentiated approaches to frontline territories, and focus on results.
• The Government approved amendments to its Resolution No. 1364 dated 6 December 2022, introducing a clearer and more transparent algorithm for determining the status of territories where hostilities are (were) ongoing or which are temporarily occupied. From now on, communities can independently submit proposals to the Ministry for Development of Communities and Territories of Ukraine to change the status of a locality if it meets the specified criteria. The Ministry will set up a commission to compile a list of such territories, which will consider proposals from communities if they have not been taken into account at the level of regional administrations.

Institutional development and monitoring of the reform

• Monitoring of local self-government reform as of 1 January 2026 showed an increase in inter-municipal cooperation (762 agreements between 984 communities), an increase in the number of starostas and an expansion of the network of administrative service centres (5,644 facilities). More than 2,119 international partnership agreements involve communities in 64 countries.
• The NAUCS and GIZ signed a Memorandum of Cooperation within the framework of the U-LEAD with Europe: Phase III Project. The document provides for the development of professional training for local government officials, strengthening the capacity of human resources management services, and improving the quality of services.

Projects and initiatives

• The selection of regional teams and territorial partner communities for DECIDE Phase II was announced. This is part of the work to implement democratic education and develop management competencies in communities.

Local initiatives

• In Ivano-Frankivsk region, 15 communities signed a memorandum to create an urban agglomeration. This is a transition to deeper cooperation in transport, water supply, education, healthcare and other areas of common interest.

These changes provide an insight into the policy and practical decisions relating to local self-government in Ukraine in January 2026; ranging from regulatory documents to financial support and from the modernisation of services to the expansion of international cooperation.

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Read all the most important news from the previous months in our newsletters.