National project for small communities “VSIM” to spotlight honest local governments: how it works

The VSIM project will cover at least 250 communities and approximately 10,000 people. It includes activities for selected participants as well as the public, such as training sessions, workshops, certification programs, public forums, and the creation of a community ranking.

What the initiative aims to change

The “VSIM. Building a culture of integrity in communities” project is being implemented by the Agency for Recovery and Development in partnership with the Institutional Development Foundation, with support from “U-LEAD with Europe”, jointly funded by the European Union and its member states Germany, Denmark, France, Austria, Poland, and Slovenia.

Compared to previous years, local government representatives have initiated a huge number of good practices and other changes at the local level, noted Oleksandr Solontai, head of the Agency for Recovery and Development. However, individual cases and isolated incidents overshadow the impression of what is being done locally.
“This too is essential: there must be both investigations and exposure. So how do we overcome it? There’s no other way than to build a different culture,” said the head of the Agency for Recovery and Development.

He continued: “So that everyone understands: local self-government is a different culture, permeated with integrity practices not because ‘someone is controlling us’, but because ‘it’s beneficial for us’. Not because ‘law enforcement will come after us’, but because ‘it’s economically mutually beneficial to build the entire system of relationships this way’. In other words, we need to complete the development of this integrity—it is not yet fully formed today.”

According to Olena Khmelnyk, the project manager, integrity means having unified common rules that work for everyone.

“To the word ‘trust’, I also want to add ‘responsibility’,” she noted. She emphasized that the initiative aims to change the mindset not only of local government representatives but of all community residents.

Why the project is significant for European integration and decentralisation

According to Sören Herbst, head of the multi-level governance support department at “U-LEAD with Europe”, building a culture of integrity is about stability.

“This is very important for Ukraine’s future because Ukraine is moving forward not only towards greater integrity, but primarily towards victory and full EU membership. Therefore, the integrity of all communities is a cross-cutting culture,” said Sören Herbst.

He also shared that he comes from East Germany. When he was growing up, that part of the country was still occupied by the enemy, who is now Ukraine’s enemy. Mr. Herbst witnessed how a culture of integrity developed after German reunification: in the municipality, the community, and across the entire country.

“As the U-LEAD with Europe programme, we have been working in Ukraine for 10 years, supporting your government in further implementing decentralisation. We will not leave you until this project is completed, and local self-government reaches the same standards as across Europe. Because life happens in municipalities. Integrity is a key part of implementing this reform,” assured the head of the multi-level governance support department at “U-LEAD with Europe”.

Project activities and target audience

Olena Khmelnyk, head of the “VSIM” project, explained that the project primarily targets communities, particularly those just beginning to build anti-corruption activities.

“There are many communities demonstrating successful cases. We want to partner with you to build various interactions with the public sector. Media also play a crucial role here by broadcasting successful community cases,” added the project manager.

According to Olena Khmelnyk, it’s significant not only to expose wrongdoing but also to highlight successful practices, so others can draw inspiration from them. The launched project will incorporate such approaches.

The initiative’s activities aim to reach at least 10,000 people. No fewer than 250 communities will participate in:

• training sessions;
• events;
• certification programmes;
• public forums.

Online courses will be available to anyone interested.

Over 30 communities will be invited to work with experts on corruption risk assessment and anti-corruption programmes. Over 10 communities will receive a comprehensive approach to developing anti-corruption programmes, risk assessment, and operational setup.

“We also plan to introduce a community integrity ranking to showcase best practices and help other communities adopt them,” Olena Khmelnyk also shared.

The project initiators will soon announce a competition to select participating communities.

Source: Recovery Win