On 11 October 2022, in Rome, Italy, Congress Director Rafael Benitez signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Sanjay Pradhan, Chief Executive Officer of the Open Government Partnership (OGP) and Oleksandr Slobozhan, Executive Director of the Association of Ukrainian Cities (AUC). This is the first tripartite agreement of its kind which complements joint efforts to improve local governance and support the renewal of Ukraine.

The Congress, OGP and AUC committed to further support Ukrainian local authorities in preserving their adherence to the principles of open government and nurture innovative democratic processes at local level. The Memorandum of Understanding sets the frame for deepened co-operation, further promotion of co-creation for better local policies, and exchanges of tools and resources. It aims to strengthen advocacy efforts of the three partners, make outreach higher, and all in all contribute to ensuring transparency, inclusiveness and accountability at local level for the benefit of citizens of Ukraine.

The Memorandum of Understanding highlights years of successful partnership and truthful relationship. It was signed on the margins of the Ministerial and High-level OGP Europe Regional Meeting held on 11-12 October 2022 in Rome, Italy.

• Memorandum of Understanding
• OGP local programme
• OGP 2022 Regional Meeting

The signature of the Memorandum of Understanding and the participation in the OGP event is organised as part of the project “Strengthening local democratic governance in Ukraine” implemented by the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities within the Priority Adjustments to the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine 2018-2022. The project aims at rebuilding capacities of local authorities and their national associations to address unprecedented humanitarian, social, economic and environmental challenges they face as a consequence of war, to reconstruct democracy and rebuild resilience at local level, as well as to implement post-war recovery measures in Ukraine.