It is incorrect to assume that if a city is not amalgamating with neighbouring hromadas, its development must be stopped. Amalgamation is not the only mechanism for hromada development. There is also cooperation, and agglomeration is one of its forms in case of large cities, said Vyacheslav Nehoda, First Deputy Minister of Regional Development, Construction, Housing and Communal Services, during the 6^th Forum of Local Self-Government in Lviv.

"Large cities are driving the economy of the country, the area of their influence is constantly increasing – this is the world practice. Cities should be the locomotives of the development of territories in Ukraine. To do this, they need clear rules of amalgamation or cooperation with neighbouring hromadas. The relevant draft laws are already under the Parliament’s consideration: on accession to the cities of oblast significance and on urban agglomerations. They are aimed at stimulating cities and neighbouring hromadas to work together to address common issues: transport, roads, networks, education, healthcare, employment, etc.," said Vyacheslav Nehoda.

According to the First Deputy Minister, while taking care of further development and attraction of investments, hromadas neighbouring with the city should amalgamate with it. Everyone will benefit from it: cities get territories for development, and suburban areas – services and resources of a large city level.

"In case of formation of urban agglomerations, the territory management system is getting complicated: an agglomeration council should be formed and so on. But this mechanism of unification of hromadas’ efforts must exist, because, firstly, the territory of agglomerations may be larger than that of the AH, and secondly, such a system can be used in cases, where hromadas are not yet ready for amalgamation for some reasons. At the same time, it will be possible to delegate additional executive powers to the formed agglomerations, which will further strengthen the process of decentralisation and the capacity of local self-government," noted Vyacheslav Nehoda.