The Council of Europe Office in Ukraine in the framework of its Action Plan for Ukraine launches a new project “Promoting civil participation in the democratic decision-making in Ukraine”, aimed at the empowerment of civil society and reinforcing its participation in decision making, in particular, laying foundation for a sustainable platform for inclusive policy dialogue between NGOs and the Kyiv City Council.

It is symbolic that the project has started with the working meeting with NGOs representatives. In the course of a meeting there were discussed the problems of public involvement to the decision making, efficiency of application of participatory democracy instruments on the local level, priority spheres of policy formation and implementation in Kyiv city, civil society agenda. The participants shared their experience and the results of successful local initiatives in Kyiv city, in particular, the projects on public space development, landscaping, environmental protection, infrastructure development, cultural and historic heritage.

Active city residents and public activists demonstrated their capability to effectively engage and mobilize Kyivans and implement successful projects for the community benefit, and also to build a working relationship with the city authorities by promoting shared responsibility and partnership.