Lviv Region is the first in Ukraine to develop an Action Plan for the Fair Transformation of the Coal Microregion by 2030

Today, at a meeting of the Steering Committee, the draft Action Plan for the Fair Transformation of the Coal Microregion until 2030 and the indicative list of projects to be supported within it were reviewed and approved.

“The relevance of this document, in my opinion, is self-evident, as we all understand that the cessation of coal mining can have serious social and environmental consequences, and the transition of the micro-region’s economy to more sustainable and environmentally friendly activities requires a solid basis for making sound strategic decisions.

For over a year, representatives of the government, regional and local authorities, experts, trade unions, miners, the public sector and business have been working on the Action Plan. A lot of work has been done: from analysing the socio-economic development of the coal micro-region (problems, challenges and development potential) to formulating strategic goals and objectives for a just transformation and filling them with specific project ideas. We are grateful to the communities for their activity, and to the representatives of the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ) for their effective support,” said Andriy Godik, First Deputy Head of the Lviv Regional State Administration.

The Action Plan includes 47 project ideas with a total value of UAH 10.1 billion under 3 approved strategic goals:

1. Energy transition and clean environment of the micro-region for the life of different generations and social groups (14 projects worth UAH 3.1 billion).
2. New competitive economy of the coal microregion (14 projects worth UAH 6.3 billion).
3. The coal microregion is adapted to the new social needs of its residents (19 projects worth over UAH 617 million).

The key topics of the projects are renewable energy, ecology, the formation of a strong entrepreneurial sector, the creation of new jobs in alternative economic activities to coal mining, stimulating the development of new specialisations in vocational education, etc.

“As a result, we have a comprehensive document aimed at ensuring a socially just transition to new activities, improving the quality of life of residents and creating conditions for environmentally sustainable development, energy sustainability and economic diversification of coal communities,” added Andriy Godik, First Deputy Head of Lviv Regional State Administration.

The action plan for the fair transformation of the coal micro-region was developed with the support of the project “Fair Transformation of Coal Regions and Green Recovery of Ukraine’s Energy Sector”, implemented in Ukraine by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection (BMWK).