On 14 May, an Administrative service center (ASC) established with the support from U-LEAD with Europe Programme was opened in Divychky hromada.

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Vyacheslav Nehoda, Deputy Minister for Development of Communities and Territories of Ukraine; Xavier Camus, Head of Operations Section 1 “Good Governance and Rule of Law” of the EU Delegation to Ukraine; Louise Morsing, Deputy Head of Mission, First Secretary of the Embassy of Sweden in Ukraine; and Susanna Dellans, Sida Programme Director of U-LEAD with Europe attendede the opening ceremony and congratulated the hromada with the new ASC.

Xavier Camus, Head of Operations Section 1 "Good Governance and Rule of Law” noted: “Effective, transparent and sustainable public service delivery for citizens and businesses constitutes one of priorities of EU support to Ukraine. I am therefore glad that an administrative service centre was opened in the Divychky hromada with the support of the EU-funded U-LEAD with Europe Programme. Having the citizen office in the administrative service centre, where residents can meet and discuss local issues as well as communicate with authorities, will facilitate the engagement of the population in the life of hromada. This will foster trust in the local authorities and create a positive environment for a strong local democracy”.

 

 

The ASC integrated the maximum number of state and local services that could be received in comfortable conditions in a modern building. More than 5 thousand residents of Divychky hromada now have a single place for communication with public authorities.

“Last year alone, Ukrainians received 14 million services at ASCs. We want the quality of these services to exceed all expectations, because today, an ASC is the key point of access to public services for citizens,” Liudmyla Rabchynska, Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, said.

The ASC’s six employees, who underwent training by U-LEAD with Europe experts, provide 135 services to residents and businesses. The ASC has a citizen office and a place where visitors can receive e-services.

“A fully-functional ASC is not just a single point for communication between residents and public authorities; it is also a center for making decisions aimed at the hromada’s development. Decentralisation also means that every Ukrainian can participate in management of their hromada’s local affairs. A public reception office was created at Divychky hromada’s ASC, where these discussions should be held and joint decisions should be made,” Vyacheslav Nehoda, Deputy Minister for Development of Communities and Territories, said.

 

 

Besides comprehensive institutional assistance, U-LEAD with Europe helped the hromada furnish seven workplaces at the main ASC office and a remote workplace in Vesele village with furniture, equipment and software.

“The well-being of every Ukrainian woman and man, boy and girl is the main objective for Sweden’s support to Ukraine’s Decentralisation Reform. And we are happy to cooperate with Ukraine in the creatin of a service state, a state that has reliable and transparent institutions that the citizens trust and where vital decisions that determine the quality of life are made close to the citizens. We are therefore proud to contribute to and be a part of U-LEAD with Europe, a programme where we cooperate closely with the hromadas to improve the quality of administrative services”, added Louise Morsing, Deputy Head of Mission, First Secretary of the Swedish Embassy in Ukraine.

 

 

All employees of the ASC in Divychky passed a training course developed by U-LEAD with Europe experts: five thematic modules concerning the role of local self-government in providing services in the hromada, procedure of delivering certain groups of administrative services, business ethics, gender aspects.

Oleksandr Sliusar, Head of Divychky hromada, said: “We are proud of working with donor community, with the European Union’s projects that help our hromada become stronger and more efficient, and improve the quality of life of our residents. We have ambitious plans, and we know that we are on the right track.”