The Ministry for Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development of Ukraine in cooperation with UNDP in Ukraine has identified three municipalities that will take part in a pilot project to assess the state of the anti-corruption system. These are the municipalities of Lutsk, Khmelnytskyi and Kalush. In total, 26 urban municipalities participated in the selection.

The project will include, among other things, an assessment of corruption risks. Following the results, anti-corruption programmes of municipalities will be developed or updated.

“Back in March, we started introducing the Ministry’s anti-corruption compliance, but corruption risks should also be addressed at the level of municipalities. In the context of decentralisation, it is important not only to create conditions for municipal development, but also to provide ongoing support where local authorities may lack expertise and knowledge. That is why we are implementing a pilot project where we will support municipalities in the development of an anti-corruption system,” said Serhii Derkach, Deputy Minister for Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development of Ukraine.

Implementation of the project will help municipalities to:

•  increase investment attractiveness;
•  ensure transparent management;
•  increase citizens’ trust in their local self-government bodies.

 “Sustainable regional development and recovery are impossible without viable anti-corruption policies and programmes in place that meet the standards of the EU and the civilized world as a whole. This is not an easy job, especially in the conditions of a large-scale war, so we bring in expert support teams to work with municipalities. The work of the teams will allow not only to improve anti-corruption standards and practices, but also to strengthen the capacity of municipalities as a whole," said Oleksandra Azarkhina, Deputy Minister for Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development of Ukraine.

The project is implemented by the Ministry for Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development of Ukraine together with UNDP in Ukraine, with the financial support of the Governments of Japan and Germany.

Municipalities that expressed interest in the competition but were not selected to participate in the project will be involved in further initiatives of the Ministry of Reconstruction.