The Poltava Oblast is a leader in implementing projects of inter-municipal cooperation of hromadas. This is proved by relentless statistics. According to the Register of Treaties on Cooperation of Territorial Hromadas (available on the website of MinRegion), 35 out of 91 agreements throughout Ukraine represent the Poltava Oblast.

Therefore, leaders of amalgamated hromadas from the Cherkasy, Chernihiv, Sumy, Ivano-Frankivsk, Chernivtsi, Khmelnytsky and Kharkiv Oblasts arrived in Poltava thanks to the "U-LEAD with Europe" programme to obtain experience and study the best practices.

During 21-23 August 2017, the participants of the study tour visited Poltava hromadas which for a long time have successfully co-operated with neighbouring regions, implemented projects and other activities, using the possibilities of inter-municipal cooperation.

Among the participants were the leaders of amalgamated hromadas of the Chernihiv Oblast, namely Nosivska, Kozeletska, Menska, Mykhailo-Kotsyubinska, Makiyivska, Losynivska, Kiptivska hromadas. A delegation organized by the Chernihiv Local Government Development Centre gathered like-minded people, those who seek to change their hromada and are ready to cooperate with their neighbours.

Therefore, with the great interest, officials of the Chernihiv Oblast participated in the forum "Cooperation of territorial hromadas - an innovative tool for the development of local self-government" in Myrhorod, as well as in the seminar "Implementation of the Law of Ukraine on Cooperation of Hromadas" in Poltava, and visited infrastructure facilities in Novi Sanzhary and Velyki Sorochyntss, Pryshyb and Pischane.

The study tour to the Poltava Oblast has shown that the effective use of the state-provided instrument of cooperation of hromadas allows joint solving of urgent problems which are completely insoluble without cooperation.

The Chernihiv Oblast lags behind the Poltava Oblast in the field of hromadas cooperation (only 6 agreements are concluded between the region’s hromadas to date). However, the potential in this direction is enormous. Cooperation can be useful both for amalgamated hromadas and for those who are still at the crossroads. This will allow to resolve today such urgent issues as joint maintenance of hospitals, functioning of centres of primary health care, ensuring fire protection, treatment of solid household waste etc.

And the main positive outcome of the study tour is that officials of the Chernihiv Oblast have clearly seen how inter-municipal cooperation works in reality and what results it can bring. Intensification of work in this direction is one of the priorities for the Chernihiv Local Government Development Centre.