€62 million for local governance: Phase III of the ‘U-LEAD with Europe’ programme inveiled
The agreement to launch Phase III of the ‘U-LEAD with Europe’ programme was signed in Kyiv. It allocates €62 million, which will be directed towards strengthening local self-governance and supporting reforms in municipalities, a Radio Svoboda correspondent reports.
The U-LEAD with Europe initiative is a Team Europe effort backed by the EU and its Member States (Germany, Denmark, France, Poland, and Slovenia) in collaboration with the Government of Ukraine.
The Phase III initiative is set to run until the end of 2027, with an initial budget of €62 million of which the EU contributed €40 million, Germany €18 million, and Denmark €4 million. This collaborative effort aims to support Ukraine’s ongoing reforms by strengthening Ukrainian municipalities, improve the resilience of local communities and advance decentralisation as part of its broader European integration path.
“We support decentralization politically, practically, and financially. I am impressed by how the decentralization process continues even during wartime. And we will be here throughout the entire third phase (of the ‘U-LEAD with Europe’ program – ed.), which is currently designed for three years. I believe that now, more than ever, Ukraine needs decentralization,” stated Katarina Mathernová, Ambassador of the European Union to Ukraine.
Mathernová also recalled that the ‘U-LEAD with Europe’ project commenced its work in Ukraine with the initiation of decentralisation a decade ago. According to the diplomat, “decentralisation is currently both vital and remarkably successful in Ukraine.”
According to Mathernová, this reform proved instrumental in supporting municipalities at the onset of the full-scale invasion. Oleksiy Kuleba, Deputy Prime Minister for Restoration of Ukraine and Minister for Communities and Territories Development, agrees with this assessment.
“I believe that the decentralisation reform played a vital role at the beginning of the full-scale invasion, as we had autonomous leaders on the ground making independent decisions, which frequently assisted the central government in its decision-making. This, undoubtedly, served as a crucial factor in our ability to withstand those challenging times. I am confident that this will persist, and our mandate is to expand the authority of local self-government bodies,” stated Oleksiy Kuleba.
The Deputy Prime Minister also expressed gratitude to the partners and allies who remained steadfast with Ukraine, “despite the three years of full-scale invasion and the eleven years of conflict with the aggressor.”
“’U-LEAD with Europe’ will continue to support Ukraine and its municipalities on their path to recovery and EU accession,” assured Bastian Veigel, Director of the ‘U-LEAD with Europe’ programme.
Phase III, extending until 2027, will concentrate on three key areas. Firstly: strengthening local self-governance and preparing municipalities for EU accession, by providing political and legal expertise. Secondly: capacity development, through which our 24 regional offices will enhance local resilience, improve service delivery, and facilitate local recovery. Thirdly: recovery expertise, where we will continue to empower municipalities to lead their own reconstruction efforts through targeted support and expertise,” the programme director noted.
Expanding the powers of local self-governance and aligning it with the Copenhagen accession criteria for EU membership is a priority of Phase III of ‘U-LEAD with Europe,’” Danish Ambassador to Ukraine, Ole Egberg Mikkelsen, stated in response to a Radio Svoboda question.
“I believe the next step forward will be to align local self-governance with European standards, and while a significant portion of this work has been completed, some aspects remain unresolved,” Mikkelsen said.
Decentralisation in Ukraine commenced in April 2014, with the launch of local self-governance reform. To secure the financial autonomy of municipalities, legislative amendments were enacted, and the municipalities underwent a period of reorganisation and consolidation. On June 12, 2020, the government approved a new basic-level administrative-territorial structure, establishing the existence of territorial communities covering the nation’s entire territory.
The ‘U-LEAD with Europe’ programme was launched in 2016 to support the implementation of multi-level governance that would be transparent, accountable, and responsive to the needs of the Ukrainian populace. Since then, the programme has supported the reform of local self-governance. Specifically, the reform has empowered citizens in accordance with the European Charter of Local Self-Government.