At the beginning of each month, the Decentralisation portal summarises the Government’s and Parliament’s decisions concerning local self-government and development of communities.

September was a month of significant events directly affecting the development of local self-government and community capacity. The Government adopted a number of decisions to support education, healthcare and infrastructure; the Parliament is considering legislative initiatives to enhance transparency and legitimacy of local governments; and the Ministry for Development of Communities and Territories of Ukraine has launched important consultations on the future of reform in the context of war and European integration.

Government decisions

• Support for education: an additional UAH 500 million has been allocated for the purchase of school buses, primarily for frontline communities. The funds will be allocated from the remaining educational subsidy.
• Water supply: a list of priority projects for the construction and restoration of water supply networks in the Vinnytsia, Odesa, Poltava, Dnipropetrovsk and Mykolaiv regions has been approved. This work will be carried out under a simplified procedure as part of a pilot project by the Agency for Restoration and the Ministry for Development.
• Healthcare: amendments have been made to the Medical Guarantees Programme, which abolish reduction coefficients for primary care facilities in frontline communities. This will ensure stable funding even in extremely difficult conditions.
• Budget 2026: The Cabinet of Ministers submitted the draft State Budget (No. 14000) to the Parliament.
• Implementation of the State Strategy of Regional Development: the Government approved the Action Plan until 2027, which defines specific steps for the restoration, development and cohesion of the country.

Initiatives of the Ministry for Development of Communities and Territories

• Regional consultations on local self-government reform and preparation for EU accession were held in September in Odesa and Poltava. Representatives of the state and local authorities, civil society and academics from 16 regions took part in the dialogue.
• Ukraine Recovery Programme III (Tranche B): the selection of community projects via the DREAM ecosystem will start on 1 October.
• Interview with Oleksii Riabykin: The Deputy Minister for Development of Communities and Territories gave his first extensive interview to the Decentralisation Portal. He outlined the key challenges of the reform:
  • how the war is changing the context of community development;
  • what institutional decisions are needed right now;
  • how the Ministry for Development sees the mechanism of state supervision over local government acts;
  • the role of district councils within the governance system;
  • other important aspects — from personnel policy to involving communities in the process of European integration.

European integration: Screening of Ukrainian legislation

On 29–30 September, Brussels hosted the first official screening of Ukrainian legislation for compliance with EU legislation in the field of regional policy and coordination of structural instruments (Negotiating Chapter 22). The Ukrainian delegation was headed by Oleksii Riabykin, Deputy Minister for Development of Communities and Territories of Ukraine.

Ukraine presented the NUTS-UA classification of territories, a geoinformation system for regional development, and the results of public investment reform. The delegation emphasised that even during wartime, reforms are continuing and European standards are being implemented

Screening is the first official stage of the EU accession negotiation process. The results will determine whether negotiations on the relevant chapter are opened or a list of conditions is set out for Ukraine.

 

New legal and regulatory drafts

• Resolution No. 14031: on confirming the legitimacy and continuity of local governments during martial law.
• Draft law No. 14048: on creating a system of state supervision over local government acts, distribution of powers, responding to illegal decisions, and a personnel reserve for district state administrations.
• Draft Law No. 14063: on labour relations during martial law: clarification of the status of officials, personnel decisions of military administrations, the procedure for dismissing employees from the temporary occupied territories, termination of the powers of local councils, and restoration of personnel documents.

Analytics and research

• Local budgets: Ihor Onyshchuk, the Polaris Programme expert, analysed the financial results of communities for the first six months of 2025 and identified risks and areas for maintaining financial stability. Ihor Herasymchuk, another Polaris Programme expert, analysed local budget revenues across 24 regions based on the results of the first six months of 2025 Preschool education: the Swiss-Ukrainian DECIDE project and the Association of Amalgamated Territorial Communities conducted a survey of administrators from 482 communities on barriers and priorities for the development of preschool education.

September proved that, even in tough times, communities remain at the focus of Government policy. Decisions by the Government, Parliament, and initiatives by the Ministry for Development show a steady move towards European integration, recovery, and strengthening the capacity of local self-government.

To stay informed about important news, follow updates on the Decentralisation portal, our online calendar, and social media accounts on Facebook and Telegram.

All top news stories from recent months can be found in our previous digests.

 

Top Decentralisation news from September:

Single Project Portfolio 2026: What it means for communities and how to get on the list

For attention of local government representatives and anyone wishing to join the LSG service!

Parliament registers Resolution supporting continuity of local governments during wartime

How a parish priest and Facebook millionaire serves his community

Ukraine launches project selection under Ukraine Recovery Programme III (Tranche B)

Regional development in Croatia – what is interesting for Ukraine

State budget 2026: Resources allocated for communities

September, the month of opportunities

Regional consultations on reforming local self-government in wartime and preparing for EU membership launch in Odesa

‘Communities need to think strategically’: Oleksii Riabykin on local self-government reform in the context of war and European integration

State budget 2026: What communities will receive and how resources will be allocated for recovery