In January 2026, a delegation of representatives from communities in Kryvyi Rih district undertook a study visit to communities in the Lviv Agglomeration. This visit further confirms that the development of growth poles and agglomerations in Ukraine is attracting increasing attention. At the recent Second International Forum of Agglomerations in Ukraine, representatives from Odesa, Ivano-Frankivsk, and Rivne regions also expressed interest in developing agglomeration cooperation. The communities of Kryvyi Rih district have now joined them.

The potential Kryvyi Rih agglomeration meets the criteria of Government Resolution No. 1493 ‘On Determining the List of Functional Types of Territories and Requirements for Indicators for Classifying Territories into Different Functional Types’, according to which communities that meet at least two of the three criteria can be considered regional growth poles:

• the tax capacity index of the community based on the results of the last three years is over 1.1;
• the population of the community is over 30,000 residents;
• favourable geographical location – a motorway of national importance passes through the centre of the community.

In other words, communities with the economic, demographic, and logistical prerequisites can become regional growth poles. It is important to note that these poles do not usually develop in isolation, but together with neighbouring communities. It is through cooperation with these communities that they fulfil their function as a ‘pole’.

The same Resolution defines agglomerations as territories that should play a leading role in the development and restoration of regions. ‘Urban agglomerations include communities connected to cities with a population of at least 470,000. An agglomeration connection is considered to exist if the localities of the community are situated within a 30-kilometre zone of influence from the administrative boundary of the relevant city.’

Such agglomerations include the Lviv Agglomeration, which hosted guests, and the potential Kryvyi Rih Agglomeration. Prior to the full-scale invasion, the population of Kryvyi Rih was over 600,000, while the population of the district of the same name was approximately 750,000. The only debatable issue in this case is the definition of the 30 km zone of influence, particularly in the case of Kryvyi Rih, which is considered to be the longest city in Europe. According to some sources, it is over 100 km long, and its logo describes it as ‘the city as long as life’.

Overall, Kryvyi Rih district – a potential agglomeration area – currently comprises 15 communities, including Kryvyi Rih, of which three are urban, two are settlement communities and ten are rural. Like most Ukrainian communities today, they are subject to constant Russian attacks, yet they also demonstrate resilience and are thinking about the future. A conference entitled ‘Kryvyi Rih 250: Regional Growth Pole for Ukrainian Reconstruction and Recovery’ was held in November 2025, and the visit referred to here was a continuation of interest in this vector of development.

Both the conference and the visit to colleagues in the Lviv agglomeration were facilitated by the ‘Krytsia: Support for Recovery of Kryvyi Rih Raion’ Project, implemented jointly by PROMAN and Lux-Development (LuxDev) with financial support from the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. Advisory support for the visit was provided by the Council of Europe’s ‘Strengthening Multilevel Governance and Local Democracy to Support Ukraine’s Recovery’ Project, implemented by the Centre of Expertise on Multilevel Governance at the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe within the framework of the Council of Europe’s Action Plan for Ukraine for 2023–2026 ‘Resilience, Recovery and Reconstruction’ and which has as one of its priorities the development of agglomerations and metropolitan governance in Ukraine.

The representatives of the Lviv Agglomeration are happy to share their experience with other potential agglomerations. They consider it their mission to develop a model that can help communities in less secure conditions to cooperate with each other, although there are currently no secure territories in Ukraine. The Lviv Agglomeration’s experience is innovative in many ways, which is what interested their colleagues from Kryvyi Rih.

During the visit, discussions focused on the potential for using the current regulatory framework, comprising the Ukrainian laws ‘On Associations of Local Governments’ and ‘On Cooperation of Territorial Communities’, to develop agglomerations. Statutory decisions were discussed to ensure a balance of interests between large and small communities within the local association of local governments ‘Lviv Agglomeration’ (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Association’), particularly the institution of co-chairmanship. This stipulates that the Association’s chair is the mayor of Lviv ex officio and, on a rotational basis every six months, one of the community leaders who are Association members. It also stipulates the principle of double majority in decision-making: a decision comes into force if it is supported by a majority of the member communities and also if they represent the majority of the Agglomeration’s population.

However, the guests from Kryvyi Rih had the opportunity to talk to representatives of the communities of the Lviv Agglomeration – Velykyi Liubin, Horodok, Obroshyne and Pustomytyn – who emphasised not so much the formal side of the matter, but rather the formation of synergy and constant communication between members, as well as the benefits of drawing on the experience of Lviv community and resolving issues of common interest. They also shared their experience of overcoming the initial mistrust and developing a joint Strategy for the Development of the Lviv Agglomeration with the support of the Council of Europe Project.

The participants of the visit asked representatives of the Lviv City Council, namely Deputy Mayor Liubomyr Zubach and Nataliia Alieksieieva, Director of the Office of Agglomeration and Community Development, about Lviv's interest in establishing cooperation with neighbouring communities. They responded that the united communities of the agglomeration form a powerful economic core, comparable to the cities with populations of over a million in neighbouring European countries. This core plays an important role in developing cooperation between Ukraine and the EU. Particular emphasis was placed on ensuring that residents of neighbouring communities have access to equal standards of living, and on fostering close links between communities in sectors such as mobility, water supply and sewage, and waste management.

Vadym Tabakera, the current Director of the Economic Policy Department of the Lviv Regional State Administration, and his predecessor, Stepan Kuibida, informed the participants of the visit about the role of the regional administration, which provided a ‘neutral’ platform for establishing cooperation between communities during the formation of the Association and continues to support its development. Such cooperation between different levels of government meets the standards of multilevel metropolitan governance, which was also discussed during the visit.

Roman Kizima, Executive Director of the Association, and Iryna Telehii, Project Manager, shared information with the participants about the Association’s projects over the past year and a half. These include two grant projects from the Council of Europe: the first launched visits by schoolchildren to neighbouring communities, created a Local History Atlas of the Agglomeration and established a tradition of holding Agglomeration fairs for craft products; the second is developing a joint strategy for solid waste management. Other projects include two mobility projects within the Interreg Europe framework, a peatland ecosystem restoration project supported by the International Network for Basin Organisations and a logistics hub development project supported by the Ukraine-Moldova American Enterprise Fund. They also discussed new plans, including the community representatives’ decision to develop a joint veteran policy and the prospects of cooperating with the Lviv City Council Institute to create a joint community sustainability concept.

According to Petro Sehedii, the mayor of Sofiivka, the discussion was sincere and open-hearted. Representatives of the Lviv Agglomeration shared not only their successes, but also the difficulties they encountered during the formation process. He believes this is important for making informed decisions about the development of the Kryvyi Rih agglomeration. ‘Our community is very dependent on Kryvyi Rih. We still use their services in areas such as medicine, water supply, and transport. However, I realised that establishing an agglomeration would benefit our community greatly. Agglomeration is the future of cooperation between large cities and small communities. A city cannot thrive without the support of neighbouring communities, and communities find it difficult to develop without a city.’

When summarising the visit, most participants noted that communities in the Kryvyi Rih district already cooperate closely, and given their proximity to the front line, they are always ready to support each other if necessary. However, after speaking with their Lviv colleagues, they realised that the agglomeration format could enhance this cooperation.

Dmytro Hurieiev, Deputy Mayor of Hleiuvatka, shared his thoughts on the visit’s outcomes, ‘The most important thing I took away from this visit is that there is a very strong synergy between communities, and the mindset of wanting to be the best and the first is changing to one of mutual support. Everyone can see that the joint result benefits the residents much more.’

Such cooperation can create new opportunities to attract and implement significant projects, which small communities often lack the capacity to do alone. However, this can also benefit large cities. ‘Today, even during wartime, communities can come together to address urgent shared needs, and we can see that this model has long existed in EU countries and has proven to be effective. The experience of the Lviv Agglomeration enables us to study models that have already been adapted to Ukrainian realities and apply them here in Kryvyi Rih. We understand that it is impossible to first restore and then develop without integrating with the territories adjacent to large cities,’ said Oleksandr Svitlychnyi, Deputy Director of the Kryvyi Rih City Development Institute.

Upon their return home, the participants of the visit plan to start discussing the prospect of forming the Kryvyi Rih agglomeration. According to Larysa Kolisniova, Deputy Mayor of Devladove, the experience of the Lviv Agglomeration shows that this process takes time, so it is worth starting now. If there is a request from communities in Kryvyi Rih district, the organiser of this visit, ‘Krytsia: Support for Recovery of Kryvyi Rih Raion’ Project, will be ready to help.

Andrii Nahornyi, Project Coordinator for Governance, Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises and Energy, shared his personal impressions of the discussion, ‘I have often wondered about the future of the decentralisation reform. Yes, it has succeeded, both at community level and in the eyes of international organisations. Ukrainians have successfully implemented a reform under extremely challenging circumstances. But what next? What should the next step be? Following our discussion, I am increasingly convinced that this should involve the global development of inter-municipal cooperation, agglomerations and growth poles, as well as a win-win strategy, all of which will strengthen everyone.’

Ukraine’s successful progress and improving the quality of life of its citizens are key priorities for the Council of Europe, which supports the development of agglomerations. Andrii Huk, Project Manager of the Council of Europe’s ‘Strengthening Multilevel Governance and Local Democracy to Support Ukraine’s Recovery’ Project, noted, ‘Both the Lviv and Kyiv agglomerations in Ukraine were formed with the assistance of the Council of Europe, which bases its work on standards of good multilevel governance. Such supra-municipal structures are developing throughout Europe because they promote sustainable development and make public services more coordinated and accessible.’ In the context of war and post-war recovery, Ukraine is demonstrating its ability to strengthen the capacity of communities, pool resources effectively, and develop functional areas. Through partnership, mutual assistance, synergy and networking, communities can provide better services today and create a sustainable foundation for the future of their residents. This is why the Council of Europe continues to support these processes and provide Ukrainian agglomerations with expert, methodological and advisory support.

This review is best concluded with the words of Iryna Telehii, Project Manager of the Association ‘Lviv Agglomeration’, ‘We are open to cooperation and ready to share the experience we have gained with the help of the Council of Europe, as well as our daily work experience, in order to develop and improve the agglomeration movement in Ukraine, which is one of the most important components of its post-war development.’

Indeed, understanding the role of agglomerations – or ‘metropolises’, as they are often referred to in other countries – in the post-war reconstruction of Ukraine, as well as the advantages of inter-municipal cooperation, is key to their further development. Such visits and exchanges of experience contribute to this understanding.

At the same time, further progress in metropolitan governance in Ukraine requires strict adherence to the principles of good governance and alignment with Council of Europe standards, especially with regard to subsidiarity, transparency, citizen participation, accountability, and strategic planning. These principles should underpin the preparation of analytical, strategic, and methodological materials to shape the culture and institutional capacity of agglomerations and ensure their sustainable development in the post-war period.

This article was prepared within the framework of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine for 2023–2026, ‘Resilience, Recovery and Reconstruction’, as part of the ‘Strengthening Multilevel Governance and Local Democracy to Support Ukraine’s Recovery’ Project, implemented by the Centre of Expertise on Multilevel Governance at the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe.

 

Myroslav Kosheliuk, Council of Europe Project Consultant
‘Strengthening multilevel governance and local democracy to support Ukraine’s recovery’