Ukraine is undertaking a large reform of its local self-government system. The Centre of Expertise for Good Governance of the Council of Europe is providing extended and comprehensive support through its Programme “Enhancing decentralisation and public administration reform in Ukraine”.

In this framework, since the beginning of 2021, the issue of legal personality at local level has been largely discussed, and the Specialised Parliamentary Committee on Local Self-Government requested assistance to the Council of Europe, as the most trusted and non-biased guardian of the good democratic governance principles.

The Centre of Expertise has taken the lead, organising diverse types of activities. In particular, it is coordinating and moderating thematic discussions, which are being conducted in camera with involvement of high-level national officials, such as MPs, Ministers, mayors, legal professionals, and many others.

In addition, the Centre of Expertise is supporting this effort through the collection of country cases of the selected member States (supported by several other international partners, including the European Union Delegation to Ukraine), and the analysis of the legislation in place.

By the end of 2021, based on the findings of these activities, the Centre of Expertise will prepare a Policy Advice for the Ukrainian authorities on this issue.