Ukraine launches national coordination for implementing the European LEADER approach in rural development

A coordination meeting on the development of the European LEADER approach in Ukraine took place in Kyiv.

LEADER is a bottom-up approach to rural development in which communities, businesses and local authorities jointly identify needs and plan development.

The new mechanism is intended to strengthen interaction between the state, communities and international partners, and to integrate LEADER into national rural development policy. In line with EU standards, a LEADER region consists of several neighbouring communities (roughly 10,000–150,000 residents) that unite around a shared development strategy. This strategy is prepared and implemented by a local action group representing the community, business and local authorities.

The event was attended by representatives of the Ministry of Economy, Environment and Agriculture of Ukraine, experts from the international projects IPRSA, GRAIN, the German-Ukrainian Agricultural Policy Dialogue (APD), the U-LEAD with Europe programme, the All-Ukrainian Association of Communities, the National Association of Agricultural Advisory Services of Ukraine, research institutions, as well as representatives of LEADER initiative groups and pilot communities from regions across Ukraine.

During the meeting, participants assessed the current state of LEADER implementation in Ukraine – including the experience of pilot projects – and identified the main barriers to scaling it up. These include the legal status of local action groups, funding mechanisms, management standards, staffing capacity, and the integration of the LEADER approach into strategic documents for rural development up to 2030, taking post-war recovery into account.

“LEADER is one of the key instruments for rural development in the European Union and has already proved its effectiveness. Its strength lies in the bottom-up principle, whereby communities, local businesses and authorities jointly determine priorities and implement development projects. For Ukraine, implementing LEADER with EU support means not only new opportunities for communities and job creation, but also the systemic modernisation of rural development policy and practical preparation for integration into the European economic area,” noted Deputy Minister of Economy, Environment and Agriculture Denys Bashlyk.