The Novorozdilska hromada hosted an event for local youth dedicated to the Day of Europe. The event was organised by the team of the U-LEAD with Europe Regional Office in the Lviv Oblast.
Halyna Khrushchak, head of the regional office, said that the U-LEAD with Europe Programme had organised similar dialogue events on the topic of “European principles of local self-government” in 24 hromadas of Ukraine on the occasion of the Europe Day.
“Our event was held on the topic of ‘European Principles of Local Self-Government’ to promote the provisions of the European Charter of Local Self-Government and the European aspirations of Ukrainian youth,” added Halyna Khrushchak.
The event participants first joined an online discussion on the development of European self-government, European integration of Ukraine and opportunities for Ukrainian hromadas, held in the U-LEAD studio. They also virtually visited the German city of Magdeburg, on the example of which the modern local self-government system is based.
Subsequently, Yuriy Holynskyi and Yaryna Turkalo, advisers of the U-LEAD with Europe Regional Office in Lviv Oblast, spoke about the essence of the decentralisation reform, outlining its main advantages and achievements.
A separate section was presented on the European Charter of Local Self-Government. This document defines the key norms and principles of all European municipalities, and it has been in force in Ukrainian legislation since 1998. Yuriy Golynskyi focused on the principle of subsidiarity to show the importance of dialogue between the authorities and the public, including young people.
“Young people were actively involved in the discussion and shared their opinions on the main functions of local self-government bodies, giving their own examples. It’s nice that young people are not just aware of such issues, but are also ready to get involved in the development of their community. They demonstrated this during the discussion on “My Future in My Hromada”, said Yuriy Holynskyi, U-LEAD with Europe’s decentralisation and local self-government adviser.
The participants worked in groups to come up with ideas for potential projects that could be implemented in the Novorozdil community. As a result, the local youth developed two ideas – the creation of an animal shelter and the installation of public Wi-Fi access throughout the city. The panelists practiced project management by going through the entire cycle – from idea to project, including budget, funding sources, activities, and other parts.
Olha Hanachevska, deputy head of the Novorozdilska community, noted that the meeting in this format was very important for young people, as a youth council will soon be established in the community, so the discussion about European principles and democracy is very useful. According to her, young people saw that they can and should participate in decision-making, and the youth council will be an effective tool for this.
“The youth of the Novorozdilska community were very active during the discussions and the whole event. We have great expectations that a significant number of young people who attended the event will join the youth council and will be able to participate in the work of the local council in practice,” summed up Yuriy Hlynskyi.