A delegation from the International Renaissance Foundation and representatives from the civil sector in Dnipropetrovsk, Volyn, Vinnytsia and Lviv oblasts visited Sheptytskyi on 10 March to familiarise themselves with the results of just transition projects implemented in the community.
The meeting took place at the Just Transition Agency with the participation of city mayor Andrii Zalivskyi and Halyna Lytvyn, programme component lead for ‘Power4Just Transition’ (GIZ). The city mayor shared his experience of the first steps in the transformation process, emphasising the importance of open dialogue with residents and focus groups in determining community development priorities.
‘Was the transformation process easy? No, it wasn’t. Were there difficulties? Yes. They exist even to this day. But the GIZ team is a reliable partner who has always met us halfway’ — Andrii Zalivskyi
The programme lead stressed that just transition is a long-term process spanning decades, which requires not only external assistance but also the community’s internal readiness to implement new policies and attract various sources of funding.
During the visit, guests toured Taras Horodetskyy Lyceum and the Primary Healthcare Centre, familiarising themselves with successful projects that demonstrate effective cooperation with international partners. The visit was carried out as part of the International Renaissance Foundation project in partnership with GIZ Ukraine, aimed at strengthening public participation in just transition processes in Ukraine’s coal regions.