August 27-28, 2012, in Sevastopol, by the initiative of the Swiss-Ukrainian Project “Decentralization Support in Ukraine” - DESPRO and the Council of Europe, under the auspices of the Administration of the President of Ukraine, a roundtable "The ways of reforming local self-government in Ukraine" was held.
The event was dedicated to the discussion of the Concept of reforming local government and territorial organization of power in Ukraine, developed by experts of the Ministry of Regional Development, Construction, Housing and Communal Services of Ukraine jointly with experts of the DESPRO Project, the Council of Europe and the Administration of the President of Ukraine. The roundtable was attended by representatives of relevant ministries, regional state administrations and councils, associations of local government bodies in Ukraine, as well as international experts.
When addressing the participants, Leonid KRAVCHUK, the President of Ukraine in 1991-1994, Chairman of the Constitutional Assembly, said that real reform of local self-government cannot be viewed in isolation from the constitutional process. Besides, the First President of Ukraine emphasized that the empowerment of local communities is aimed not only at balancing the system of public administration and its democratization, but also, for example, at preventing any further speculation on the language topic, at creating a unified regional policy which would unite the country. In the near future, system-related comprehensive proposals should be prepared on constitutional renewal of legal regulation of the local self-government issue, which has to become a reference point, a unifying factor for local self-government reform.
According to Maryna Stavniychuk, Advisor to the President of Ukraine, local government reform, fiscal decentralization, devolution of power in favour of the local community – this is the foundation for further strengthening of the national unity of Ukraine. At the first stage of the reform, implementation of mechanisms of participatory democracy at the local level is an obvious necessity: from strengthening of local community self-organization - to empowering of civil control through public hearings, conferences or meetings of residents etc. The principles of voluntary involvement for associations of local communities, subsidiarity, and democracy in managerial decision-making are basic priorities for local self-government reform.
During the roundtable, five working groups identified a reasonable territorial basis for the work of local government bodies and executive authorities; worked out the mechanisms for increasing the quality and improving access to administrative and social services, creating the appropriate conditions for the implementation own and delegated responsibilities by local government bodies; promoting the forms of participatory democracy at the local level; improving the system of local budgets in the context of local self-government reform.
The roundtable participants emphasized the need for urgent reform of local self-government system. During the event, they also discussed in detail the draft Concept of reforming local government and territorial organization of power in Ukraine.