The event brought together representatives of local authorities–communities that may be included in the future potential Ivano-Frankivsk Agglomeration, representatives of regional authorities, experts and project partners. The meeting was organised by the Council of Europe in co-operation with the Ivano-Frankivsk regional branch of the Association of Ukrainian Cities and the Ivano-Frankivsk City Council.

During the presentation, the Council of Europe consultant Myroslav Koshelyuk familiarised the attendees with modern international trends in the development of metropolitan governance, European models of governance and the features of implementing such approaches in Ukraine. The participants discussed the role of inter-municipal co-operation, mechanisms for coordinating the development of territories and the benefits of joint planning for communities. Special attention was paid to the prospects for the formation of the Ivano-Frankivsk Agglomeration. Ruslan Martsinkiv presented a vision of the development of the agglomeration, outlined potential opportunities for communities and key challenges that require joint solutions. During the discussion, community representatives exchanged views on future formats of co-operation, strategic planning and coordination of territorial development. The participants of the event noted that the creation of effective mechanisms of metropolitan governance is an important tool for ensuring sustainable development of communities, improving the quality of public services and supporting the processes of recovery and reconstruction of Ukraine.

The event was organised within the framework of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine “Resilience, Recovery and Reconstruction” 2023–2026 and the project “Strengthening multilevel governance and local democracy to support Ukraine’s recovery”, implemented by the Centre of Expertise for Multilevel Governance at the Congress.