On 17 October, the 2^nd Regional Development Forum “Southern Dream” was launched in the Koblivska AH with the support of the U-LEAD with Europe Programme. It was attended by the representatives of the Odesa Oblast State Administration, Mykolayiv Oblast Council, experts from the Central Reform Office, U-LEAD leadership, experts from the Mykolayiv Local Government Development Centre, as well as representatives of AHs of the Mykolayiv, Kherson, Odesa, Kirovohrad, Kyiv, Dnipropetrovsk and Poltava Oblasts, mass media, etc.

“Local self-government is one of the basic principles of democracy and constitutional order in Ukraine. Today, 705 amalgamated hromadas of Ukraine are local self-government leaders. The first local elections in 125 AHs will take place on 23 December. Thus, by the end of the year, 830 voluntarily amalgamated hromadas will operate in Ukraine. These are good indicators, since more and more people want to change their lives for the better,” stressed Ivan Lukerya, CRO coordinator.

“To support AHs, state instruments have been created: State Fund for Regional Development, subventions, subsidies, State Road Fund, etc. In total, it’s over UAH 39 billion. The main task of our work is to show AHs the possibilities of development of their own potential,” he emphasised.

The directors of the Mykolayiv and Kherson Local Government Development Centres and representatives of the Odesa Oblast State Administration told about the state of decentralisation in the southern regions.

The full version is available in Ukrainian – please click HERE