In late December 2014 the Supreme Rada introduced changes to the Budget and Taxation Codes of Ukraine, with the goal of enhancing the role of the local budgets through redistribution of the incomes and expenditures between the budgets of various levels. To disseminate the information on the introduced novelties Swiss-Ukrainian project “Decentralization support in Ukraine” DESPRO and Ukrainian association of the raion and oblast’ councils offered a new e-course “Local budgets in the context of the budget process reform”, which was held on the DESPRO Sharing of practices web-platform from March 4 to April 4 2015.

E-course was aimed at assisting the local self-governments’ staff in better understanding theoretical and practical innovations in the law with respect to the formation and operation of the local budget, their treasury servicing, fiscal control, implementation of the state-private partnerships under budget process decentralization.

E-course “Local budgets in the context of the budget process reform” includes 5 modules”:

·           Local budgets in the process of power decentralization;

·           Program-targeted budgeting method as a means of enhancing the efficiency of the local self-governance bodies expenditures; ·           ensuring the operation of the local budgets: issues of treasury servicing of the local budgets;  

·           State fiscal control under the reform of the budget process for the local budgets and power decentralization.

·           State-private partnership as a tool of satisfying the interests of territorial community in providing social services and acquiring additional revenues for the local budgets.

Traditionally the Expert room and Legal consulting were operating under the IdeaLab. Participants had a chance of getting answers concerning the local budgets panning and establishing of the relations between central and local budgets; salaries and work relations in the budget entities; planning and use of the special fund of the local budgets; filling out the declarations on property, incomes, expenditures and financial obligations for the year 2014; local bodies’ authority in land relations area; distribution of the terms of reference between local councils and their executive bodies. Naturally, it is not an exhaustive list of issues tackled by the experts and participants in the IdeaLab. Or you can just go to this site and check them out yourself!

At the beginning course’s authors and organizers spelled out the anticipated results: the understanding of the budget process and inter-budget relations under decentralization reforms and the mechanisms of their implementation; learning the current legislative and regulatory basis for local budgets’ operation, state fiscal control; expert consultations to ensure competent and legal managerial decisions in managing financial resources of the local budgets etc. However, the feed-back obtained from the participants allowed confirming that much more efficient results have been achieved. 

The training embraced participants from different regions, from small villages to big cities, officials of various levels from the local self-governance bodies and executive bodies, active members of the territorial communities, staff of the utility companies, institutions nd establishments.  E-course brought together people working right at the grass-root level, and willing not only to do their duties properly, but also to change the country for the better. Sharing experiences, learning about the innovative approaches to the management and governing, discussions on the most efficient mechanisms for the territorial development, establishing collaboration – it I just a tiny bit of the bulk of knowledge acquired by the participants on the web-platform. 

Each participant could choose a convenient time to study theoretical materials, do hand-on exercises, tests, to communicate at the forums. Everyone had a chance of expressing one’s vision and sharing experience. A participant O.Zaborotska said: “Efficiency and effectiveness of  the on-line studies as compared to full-time studies is obvious: it provides you with the opportunity to study in convenient time, with access to most recent resources on various topics, to information checked by the experts, interesting practical exercises and discussions at the forums. In my opinion, the course “Local budgets in the context of the budget process reform” should be made mandatory for all the officials of the self-governance bodies and public servants”. 

During the forum “Are local self-governments ready for budget reform?” the participants had the opportunity of discussing the current issues. E-course forums became the podium for discussions on power decentralization and reforming of the local self-governance, voluntary amalgamation of the territorial communities and their collaboration, administrative and territorial reform, introduction of innovations for the officials in the reforming process, readiness for budget reform etc. Here is a quote from N. Kosarevych’s summarizing questionnaire: “..the major efficiency and usefulness consisted in communications during forums. People not only discussed th training topics, but also could share opinions and advice. As the saying goes: “So many people, so many opinions”.  

Here is another feedback from a participant: “Thank you! It was very instructive and useful! I received a lot of positive emotions and really needed knowledge, necessary for my work. I would not be able to learn the majority of the regulatory acts and laws on my own! Set up more courses! The craving for learning has no limits!”-wrote O.Ryzhyk. 

216 participants completed e-course and will be issued a certificate.

Although the e-course “Local budgets in the context of the budget process reform” is completed, the Sharing of practices does not stop its operation and everyone could see the experts’ and participants’ contribution in IdeaLab, the laboratory of the best practices in local self-governments’ issues. To that end open the link http://mx.despro.org.ua:8081/ , get registered at the platform of the Practices sharing and enroll to the on-going e-course of IdeaLab. See you there!

E-course facilitator

Yulia Lozyuk