As a result of unification of territorial communities, the key administrative services, which today are available mostly in raion centres, will become closer to and accessible for population. The statement was made during a “European state” TV programme on “Rada” channel by the head of Department of local self-government and territorial organization of authority of Minregion of Ukraine, Sergii Sharshov.

“If we analyze the modern condition of village councils (we have more than 10 thousand of them), we must admit, that they have almost no functions and no authority. In fact, in most cases they do not provide any administrative services, but only issue certificates, permitting to get other certificates. For instance, if a person wants to get a subsidy or other social protection means, this person addresses the village council just to get a certificate, confirming the place of residence, and then goes to the raion centre to get the actual service”, Sergii Sharshov explained.

According to the official, basic administrative services, are presently concentrated on the raion level, where many population categories find it problematic, or, at least, inconvenient, to get them.

“Practical implementation of the law on voluntary unification of territorial communities means, that on a territory of a modern raion several unified administrative-territorial units can be created, which will have the status, functions, and authority of a city of oblast’ significance. A certain subdivision of raions will take place. And people will get the necessary administrative services not in a raion centre, but in the unified community centre, which, in most cases, will be located much closer”, Sergii Sharshov noted.

Beside that, he reminded, that, according to the law on voluntary unification of territorial communities, authority in cities and villages, included into a unified community, would be represented by elders. One of their key functions would be the collection and primary processing of requests from population for administrative services, as well as assisting the public while procuring the necessary documents in respective institutions.

“We have 30 thousand settlements. 16 thousand of them do not have any authorities at all. These are the so-called “villages without councils”. In these places the situation with service provision is catastrophic. In order to solve this problem, respective amendments are already introduced into the law on local self-government, providing that a unified community has the right to make a decision on establishment of elder position in each settlement, that needs it”, told Sergii Sharshov.