Region Ready — a new applied capacity-building programme for regions — has been officially launched in Kyiv by U-LEAD with Europe, with the support of European partners and in cooperation with the Ministry for Communities, Territories and Internally Displaced Persons of Ukraine. The programme is designed to help Ukrainian regions prepare for EU-aligned regional programming and delivery, and for the future implementation of the EU Cohesion Policy, by moving toward the practical application of European approaches to regional development.

Representatives of eight pilot regions join the initiative

During the launch event, Memoranda of Understanding were signed between the Ministry for Communities, Territories and Internally Displaced Persons of Ukraine and the participating Oblast Military Administrations. Sumy, Zakarpattia, Vinnytsia and Cherkasy oblasts, already taking part in the initiative, were joined by Odesa, Rivne and Chernivtsi oblasts, which formalised their participation during the signing ceremony. For Volyn, the MoU, is still to be signed.

 

What the capacity building programme of Region Ready offers

U-LEAD with Europe previously delivered the nationwide Region Ready Online 24 programme, which established a shared introductory baseline across all 24 regions of Ukraine. Region Ready is the applied next stage, combining nationwide learning with in-depth practical support for regions: it involves an intensive, product-oriented capacity-building process with a selected group of regions, linked to their own 2028–2034 Regional Development Strategies, Action Plans, operations portfolios and implementation arrangements.

Regional authorities retain ownership of decisions and documents, while U-LEAD with Europe and its experts provide methodology, facilitation, practical tools, review and peer learning for participating regions. All eight oblasts will build robust portfolios of investment projects and strengthen their capacity to manage them effectively.

 

 

According to Astrid Kohl, Programme Director of U-LEAD with Europe, Region Ready marks a shift from learning about European approaches to applying them in practice: within the capacity development programme, regions will work on concrete strategies, action plans, operations portfolios and implementation arrangements.

 

 

Vitaliy Bezgin, Minister for Communities, Territories and Internally Displaced Persons of Ukraine, underlined the strategic importance of aligning Ukraine's regional development policy with the EU Cohesion Policy, stressing that the relevant Master Plan for the Chapter 22 of EU Accession negotiaton should become a practical tool for preparing regions to implement European regional policy.

 

 

Representatives of the Delegation of the European Union to Ukraine and the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany also took part in the event, highlighting the importance of building regional-level capacity and the value of European experience for developing an effective regional development system in Ukraine.

In the coming period, the participating regions will form their working teams and, supported by experts, prepare specific roadmap for each region.