U-LEAD Page 1 of 6 THE MONTHLY NEWSLETTER OF THE U-LEAD WITH EUROPE PROGRAMME ISSUE # 5, SEPTEMBER 2018 National Conference "New Ukrainian School - start of reforms, participation of hromadas" TABLE OF CONTENTS Kyiv, 21 August 2018 Photo: U-LEAD Archives Feature: Accelerating the decentralisation in DECENTRALISATION OF EDUCATION IS AMONG THE the Kyiv Oblast PRIORITIES OF THE UKRAINIAN GOVERNMENT The Interview: Iryna Kohut To promote the start of the New Ukrainian Together with other partners in the education School and discuss key strategies and topics, sector, U-LEAD organised a break-out session Decentralisation Dynamics more than 1,000 stakeholders from the on local education management where the education sector all over Ukraine were invited to important role and contributions of local self- Success Story: a conference and greeted by President Petro government in the implementation of the reform Focus on Vocational Education Poroshenko and Minister of Education and were highlighted. The session participants and Training Science Liliia Hrynevych. exchanged their experiences, discussed challenges ahead and formulated policy Voices of U-LEAD with Europe Decentralisation in education was among the priorities that will be presented to the Ministry of most prominent issues discussed at the event. Education and Science (MES). Speaking at the conference, Hugues Mingarelli, IMPRINT Head of the EU Delegation to Ukraine, identified The upcoming Vocational Education and decentralisation as one of the major successes Training (VET) reform was also discussed. U- of the country. LEAD expert Gennadiy Rusanov presented Responsible for recommendations to strengthen evidence-based the publication: Ambassador Mingarelli also called upon and collaborative decision-making through relevant Ukrainian authorities to do their utmost capable regional VET councils, developed with U-LEAD with Europe and ensure that local elections in newly the support of U-LEAD. Programme amalgamated hromadas (AHs) take place this Bastian Veigel, year. This would allow more than one million Kameran Khudur Ukrainians in over 120 hromadas to enjoy the benefits of decentralisation, including hub Editors: schools and the new educational space. Olena Molodtsova Roland Hackenberg Production and distribution: U-LEAD Monitoring, Visibility and Knowledge Management Team mhtml:file://C:\Users\madoia_kar\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\INetCache\Co... 10.10.2018 U-LEAD Page 2 of 6 U-LEAD IN THE SPOTLIGHT KYIV U-LEAD LAUNCHES THE INITIATIVE TO ANJA FISCHER SUPPORT ENERGY MANAGEMENT IN AMALGAMATED HROMADAS U-LEAD SECTOR REFORMS TEAM LEADER On 6 September, U-LEAD with Europe launched its new initiative “Support to energy management in amalgamated hromadas”. It aims to assist local authorities in becoming more energy-efficient, thus saving funds for vital MOVING TOWARDS investments in municipal services and socio-economic development. A REFORMED This initiative is implemented jointly with the GIZ Project “Energy Efficiency in Municipalities II” and will run up until EDUCATION SECTOR IN October 2019. Thirty AHs will receive technical support in setting up integrated energy management systems, including Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plans HROMADAS (SECAPs). While most schoolchildren - and many U-LEADers - enjoyed the last days of summer, the Ministry of Education and Science with KYIV support from U-LEAD with Europe held its biggest national MORE THAN 200 HROMADA LEADERS AND conference so far on 21 August to mark the start of the ambitious ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICE EXPERTS New Ukrainian School reform. From 1 September, a modern PARTICIPATED IN THE STUDY VISITS TO learning environment and improved quality of education will enter Ukrainian classrooms. EXEMPLARY ASCS The conference was a great opportunity for representatives of new More than 200 hromada leaders and administrative service hromadas to take active part in discussions with educators and experts from all regions of Ukraine have already benefited policymakers at the national level. Promoting effective collaboration from nine visits to exemplary ASCs. and communication between different levels of administration is part of U-LEAD’s sector decentralisation approach. One of the They learned how institutional mechanisms, such as prerequisites for that are sufficient capacities, as U-LEAD integration of services, flexible staffing and creation of education policy adviser Iryna Kohut points out in this issue’s remote workplaces for starostas, are implemented at interview. Among the challenges identified during a session ASCs. In the course of the study visits, infrastructural moderated by her at the conference were the low management and features of newly created ASCs were presented, including financial capacities of local self-government authorities. To address open space planning, absence of barriers, facilities for this demand, U-LEAD Sector Reform Team has been working on people with disabilities, self-service terminals and specific capacity development measures and promoting peer-to- children’s corners. peer learning through regional networks. In total, there will be 35 study visits gathering over 1,000 But while everyone talks about secondary education, important representatives of hromadas from all over Ukraine. steps are also taken in the area of Vocational Education and Training (VET). Here we highlight the most recent developments of the national VET policy and U-LEAD’s contribution to this process, KYIV which sets an important framework for the decentralisation of the TREMBITA SYSTEM HAS ENGAGED MORE sector. THAN 60 IT SPECIALISTS We hope that you will enjoy reading the new issue of Dynamics that will bring you more interesting facts and updates about EGOV4Ukraine and SoftXpansion (Ukraine) conducted U-LEAD activities and beyond. additional training events on the Trembita system for more than 60 IT specialists from different governmental agencies, including the State Migration Service, the State Fiscal Service, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Ministry of Finance, the Central Election Commission, the Pension Fund, the Ministry of Social Policy, the State Land Cadastre, etc. The trained specialists will help to connect the databases and registries of their respective agencies with Trembita system. KYIV mhtml:file://C:\Users\madoia_kar\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\INetCache\Co... 10.10.2018 U-LEAD Page 3 of 6 THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE VULYK INFORMATION SYSTEM WILL BEGIN IN 10 MUNICIPALITIES The State Agency for e-Governance of Ukraine and the Estonian e-Governance Academy signed the partnership agreement with 10 Ukrainian municipalities to start the implementation of the Vulyk information system in 10 pilot ASCs. The agreement was signed with the municipalities of Ukrainka, Rzhyshchiv, Obukhiv, Pereyaslav- Khmelnytskyi, Kamyanets-Podilskyi, Kakhovka, Nova Kakhovka, Yuzhne, Olevsk and Chortkiv. By the end of 2020, Vulyk will be launched in up to 600 ASCs across Ukraine. ACCELERATING THE DECENTRALISATION IN THE KYIV OBLAST Acceleration of the amalgamation process is amongst the key Georg Milbradt mentioned that Germany had dealt with similar issues for the Kyiv Oblast. This process requires good coordination issues more than 20 years ago during the unification process, and between local hromadas willing to amalgamate, the rayon and the that decentralisation finally changed people’s mindsets. According oblast administrations. to Larysa Makarenko, Chairwoman of the Baryshivka Rayon Village Heads Association, a study trip to successful hromadas of That was why the Baryshivka Rayon leadership focused on the the Poltava Oblast, organised by U-LEAD with Europe, was very discussion of prospective amalgamation when they met Georg instrumental in changing the stance towards the amalgamation Milbradt, Special Envoy of the German Government on process. governance and decentralisation reforms in Ukraine, on 8 August. “I feel myself like a postman who delivers impressions, and I “If earlier people approached me and asked why we were going to promise to convey your messages,” – said Dr. Milbradt when destroy their rural areas by establishing amalgamated hromadas, asked by the leadership of the Baryshivka Rayon to discuss their now people come and ask why they still do not have an AH. And amalgamation with Vice Prime Minister Hennadii Zubko in Kyiv. the most positive impact is when they visit successful AHs and see On 11 September, the Kyiv Oblast State Administration issued a the changes,” - said MP Pavlo Rizanenko, who represents positive conclusion for the amalgamation of 18 villages to form the residents of Baryshivka in the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. Baryshivska AH. “We, as U-LEAD with Europe, try to ensure that local people are able to convince other people in the necessity of the decentralisation reform and there is the political will at the national level to go the same way,” – underlined Bastian Veigel, GIZ Programme Director of U-LEAD with Europe. THE U-LEAD WITH EUROPE INTERVIEW IRYNA KOHUT U-LEAD EDUCATION POLICY ADVISER LOCAL AUTHORITIES SHOULD CREATE CONDITIONS FOR THE AUTONOMY OF SCHOOLS mhtml:file://C:\Users\madoia_kar\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\INetCache\Co... 10.10.2018 U-LEAD Page 4 of 6 What changes are envisaged by the educational reform in the work of local self- And what is the school autonomy about? government bodies, that is, in the management of education at the local level? The new Law "On Education" introduces important principles that When we talk about schools and kindergartens, the boundaries