On 13 September 2024, we took part in the IV Legal Reform Forum for CSOs. We held a panel discussion focused on legislative acts aimed at strengthening the instruments of public participation in decision-making by the authorities, in particular, improving the openness and transparency of their work.
They discussed the status of consideration, adoption, entry into force, and implementation of the provisions of Laws of Ukraine 3590-IX ‘On Ensuring Transparency of Local Self-Government’, No. 3703-IX ‘On Democracy at the Local Self-Government Level’, No. 3841-IX ‘On Public Consultations’, No. 6319 ‘On Improving the Procedure for Organising, Operating and Terminating a Self-Government Body’.
Olena Shuliak, Chairperson of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on the Organisation of State Power, Local Self-Government, Regional Development, and Urban Planning, opened the discussion with the following words:
‘In recent years, we have been talking a lot about the decentralization reform, but we are not saying the most important thing - that this reform will be successful only when community residents influence local decision-making.’
Pavlo Ostrozkyi (MP, co-author of Law No. 3590-IX) shared with his colleagues and participants a specific example of the implementation of the discussed changes in the Druzhkivka City Council. In addition, the expert made a presentation of the benefits of the Law of Ukraine ‘On Ensuring Transparency of Local Self-Government’.
Bohdan Kolyada, Secretary of Berdychiv City Council (Zhytomyr Oblast), also shared his case of bringing the community closer to participation in local governance. Mr Kolyada considers the adoption of the charter of the Berdychiv City Territorial Community to be its greatest achievement.
Maksym Lukiniuk, UCIPR Consultant on Public Participation Mechanisms, in his speech called on the sector to form a coalition in the implementation of the discussed laws with the following words:
‘The Constitution is the basic law that defines democratic procedures for interaction between citizens and the state. The Statute of a territorial community is the same law but at the local level. It defines the interaction of residents with local government.’
Oksana Pavliuk, Head of the Department for Local Self-Government Development and Interaction with Council of Europe Institutions, Ministry of Communities, Territories and Infrastructure of Ukraine, summed up the discussion. She focused the attention of all those present on the tasks of developing public participation in the context of implementing the action plan for reforming local self-government and territorial organization of power in Ukraine for 2024-2027.
The panel was moderated by Maksym Latsyba, Head of the UCIPR Civil Society Development Programme.
The question and answer session showed that the civil society representatives present have long been ready to support the implementation of the laws under discussion, and moreover, the sector is proactive, ready to be not only the first members of working groups to prepare recommendations for the implementation of the laws, but also to implement such electronic tools of public participation as electronic consultations, school participatory budgeting and other digital methods of communication between the authorities and the community in territorial communities.
The two-day event brought together participants around 9 discussion panels, 2 smart talks, 1 debate, 52 speakers, and 12 moderators.
The event was held within the framework of the Ukraine Civil Society Sectoral Support Activity, implemented by ISAR Ednannia in consortium with the Ukrainian Centre for Independent Political Research and the Centre for Democracy and Rule of Law with the support of the American people through USAID - US Agency for International Development.