The updated State Strategy for Regional Development is bringing Ukraine closer to European integration. Strategic planning is now becoming a prerequisite for communities and regions to receive and use public investments effectively. In an interview with Decentralisation, Oleksii Riabykin, Deputy Minister for Development of Communities and Territories of Ukraine, discussed the progress of the strategy update process and the changes to the approach to planning.

The implementation of the Strategy not only forms part of Ukraine’s movement towards European integration, but also constitutes the fulfilment of relevant international obligations.

According to Oleksii Riabykin, 22 regional strategies have already been approved, and more than 1,300 communities are in the process of strategic planning: some have already approved their documents, while others are in the final stages of approval.

‘This is an important step in the reform of public investment management. From now on, having a strategic plan will be a prerequisite for obtaining and using public funds effectively at local, regional, and national levels,’ stated Deputy Minister.

Communities develop medium-term plans for priority public investments and form unified project portfolios. In this process, they are supported by the Ministry for Development, the DREАM team, as well as the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Economy. To improve the quality of strategic planning, training programmes for communities and regions are conducted in face-to-face and online formats.

Oleksii Riabykin agreed that the lawmakers had set too many planning documents for communities: a community development strategy, an integrated development concept, a territory restoration plan, and a comprehensive restoration programme.

‘One or two documents would be sufficient for planning at community and regional levels. Currently, the main focus should now be on community and regional strategies. For now, all other documents can remain ‘on the shelves’ – they are not urgently needed for daily work and planning,’ underlined Mr Riabykin.

The Ministry is already developing draft legislation that would significantly reduce the number of planning documents that communities are required to have.

Read the full interview with Oleksii Riabykin, Deputy Minister for Development of Communities and Territories of Ukraine at the link - https://decentralization.ua/news/20006

As reported earlier, on 26 September 2025, the Government approved the Action Plan for the Implementation of the State Strategy for Regional Development for 2021–2027.

The document is designed for three years and contains 101 tasks with clear deadlines and performance indicators.

Priorities include:

• reintegration of de-occupied territories and support for veterans and IDPs;
• high-quality public services in communities (education, healthcare, social protection, culture);
• construction of 4,500 safety classes and 800,000 square metres of social housing;
• creation of mental health centres and safety centres in communities;
• new jobs, investments, tourism and digitalisation.