The European Union continues the U-LEAD with Europe program and will disburse to Ukraine EUR 50 million for the implementation of the second stage of the program. This issue was discussed during a meeting of Vice Prime Minister/ Minister of Regional Development, Construction, Housing and Communal Services of Ukraine Hennadii Zubko and the Head of the Support Group for Ukraine Peter Wagner, and the Head of Cooperation of the Delegation of the European Union to Ukraine Stefan Schleuning.

"We prolong our successful cooperation with the U-LEAD project. The roadmap of cooperation will remain the same, as the EU-Ukraine agreement on cooperation under this project complies with the European Charter of Local Self-Government. By the end of January 2019, in synergy with our international partners, we will prepare an operational action plan till 2020, and basing on that we will propose a structure of the Central Reforms Office. We have a number of new objectives - in particular, the elaboration of electoral legislation and cartographic activities aimed to model processes in the regions", stressed Hennadii Zubko.

The Gov’t official told that currently the country, inter alia the central and local authorities, the Parliament, local self-government bodies are facing a number of dominant tasks and their implementation entails progress of the decentralization reform. This implies the formation of a new territorial basis and the holding of the 2020 elections in the new administrative-territorial map of Ukraine.

"In parallel, local self-government bodies, the RSA and over 10 ministries have to move towards the formation of a subregional level and their own territorial structures. In 2020, the issue of new electoral legislation on local elections will arise. And we are ready to propose amendments to the law. We will insist on involving the public in the electoral process. We are short on time – only 2 years. We have a very tight deadline for such fundamental change. But we have strong support from our international partners. Thank you for 4 years of cooperation and for the faith in the reform! " accentuated Hennadii Zubko.