Council of Europe event – “Decentralisation in Ukraine”

Palais de l’Europe, 2 February 2017

Statement by Andreas Kiefer, Secretary General of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities

Deputy Prime Minister Zubko,

Deputy Ministers Vyacheslav Nehoda, and Sergiy Kyslytsya,

Dear Secretary General Jagland,

Dear Ambassadors,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am pleased to take part in this meeting, today, on decentralisation in Ukraine.

Decentralisation - based on the principle of subsidiarity - was one of the mega-trends in Europe at the end of the 20th century. It has contributed to shape inclusive societies in municipalities, provinces, regions, cantons and is an intrinsic feature of the European model of society. Local democracy, responsibilities of elected women and men, who are accountable to their populations, is the backbone of democratic states. This year we celebrate 60 years of the establishment of the predecessor of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities as the first ever institutional body of local authorities in an international organisation.

Decentralisation still is a common trend today and we see decentralisation reforms taking place in many of our member states. Each decentralisation process is different, due to the specificities and the historical contexts in the different countries. When it comes to the distribution of powers and responsibilities between different levels of government, we are aware that countries with a communist past and a vertical hierarchy in every respect have a different approach than countries with democratic local self-government enshrined in their constitutions since the middle of the 19th century.

In countries with a vertical and hierarchical institutional memory decentralisation cannot be achieved through a simple change of legislation. A change of culture, a change of mind-set, is necessary. I would even call it a “cultural revolution”.

We in the Congress welcome the commitment to reform and change and the initiatives that both the Ukrainian government and the parliament have been pursuing. The path is still long and many challenges are ahead of the actors involved in the political process. We understand the difficulties of a country which has parts of its territory occupied and is threatened by separatist tendencies and military conflicts in the East. We in the Congress are committed to support our Ukrainian partners – in Kyiv and in the cities and Oblasts – to establish structures but especially to empower the new generation of elected politicians who took responsibilities since the local and regional elections in October 2015. In many Oblasts more than half of the councillors are new and keen on change and reforms and on fighting corruption. And the government and the parliament should be encouraged by the opinion polls which show that a large majority of the population feels that the decentralisation reform should progress faster.

What is the aim of a decentralisation reform? The proper implementation of the principle of subsidiarity to serve the people! Decentralisation should transfer and entrust powers and responsibilities to local and regional authorities for them to be empowered and accountable when responding to the needs of their citizens. Decentralisation should enable them to implement efficient, transparent and accountable local governance.

Despite the megatrend I mentioned there is a lack of understanding of what subsidiarity is and we note some attempts for recentralisation, partly coming from nationalistic motives. This fits – unfortunately – into the analysis SG Jagland made when he spoke about “legislative nationalism”. This means: a tendency from “rule of law” to “rule of my law”.     
This is where the Congress comes into play: we provide support to those willing to act as “leaders for change”, as leaders for meaningful local democracy based on European values and legal instruments.

The Congress does not promote or defend a “one-size fits all” decentralisation. This is not the purpose of our actions and is simply unrealistic.

Guided by the European Charter for Local Self-Government and the Reference Framework for Regional Democracy the Congress has been supporting Ukraine in translating these European values and standards into national legislation in their own responsibility. As a second step the Congress provides support to national stakeholders who are ready to take ownership in building a better future for their citizens.

This is why we have been standing for many years next to our Ukrainian friends to encourage national authorities to further implement the principle of subsidiarity in their country. A better and clearer distribution of powers and responsibilities between all levels of government will benefit the society as a whole.

However, it would be counter-productive to enforce centrally-adopted legislation through governmental micro-management. Discretion must be given to capable and accountable local and regional authorities to respond to the needs of their citizens, within a well-defined national framework.

 

Peer exchanges, meeting among mayors, governors and councillors from different member states are only one way that the Congress contributed greatly to the local democracy dimension in the Council of Europe Action Plans for Ukraine.

The co-operation activities we carry out build upon the continuous political dialogue we have with Ukrainian authorities – both at national and local level - within the monitoring, post-monitoring and observation of elections. In this regard, Ukraine is a good example as we have gone successfully through all these stages in partnership.

I should congratulate you Mr Zubko, and your government, for the positive steps that have already been taken in complying with the Congress recommendations. You have already presented an update of the on-going reform so I will not repeat this. These positive steps must be pursued and I can assure you that the Congress will stand by our Ukrainian friends to provide the necessary support.

We all know that decentralisation cannot be achieved only through legislation, through administrative and territorial reforms. It needs continuous political support and endorsement by and empowerment of all stakeholders, including local authorities and citizens. In addition the media have a responsibility of factually informing the greater public.

Local elected representatives – mayors and local councillors - face demands from citizens on a daily basis, and the recent reforms, with the possibilities they bring along, give a new institutional ground for local authorities to better answer the needs of the population.

In this prospect, the Congress accompanies mayors and councillors in their roles as leaders for change and everyday actors of local democracy. In addition, we strongly believe that local governance is a matter not only for mayors and councillors but for all community residents, and in particular for the younger generation. Therefore we have complemented our seminars and training activities with a focus on young people engaged in social and political activities at the local level.

Before concluding, allow me to say a few words on Eastern Ukraine. The Congress implements its activities nation-wide. In early 2017, we will particularly focus on the Eastern regions and systematically involve them in all our events. Today in Kharkiv, 30 mayors are discussing their role as leaders for change in the presence of Congress members from other countries. The topics addressed are information about decentralisation reforms in other European states, ethics, transparency and accountability and leading change (from idea to project) as well as citizens’ participation.

We heard already that the current Action Plan for Ukraine comes to its end in December. It is now time to reflect on what more can be done to consolidate the efforts undertaken. The Congress stands ready to pursue its support to the decentralisation process and to local and regional authorities in meeting expectations and tackling upcoming challenges in a modern, responsible and efficient manner. We are ready to contribute to fostering the awareness and mind-set for reform, change, democratisation and ownership of the political stakeholder. In this way the Congress is happy to contribute to the “cultural revolution” which Ukraine has embarked on - with the experience from local politicians of many of the Council of Europe member states. I want to thank the donors for having supported the activities and invite them to contribute financially to the action plan from 2018 onward.

I look forward to our exchanges today, to hear more about the most important developments and I trust that the means for a long-standing cooperation will be found.

Ukraine was the first country to sign, in May 2015, a Roadmap for the implementation of the Congress recommendations for changes in the monitoring report of 2013. This Roadmap focused on three areas:

- the need for Constitutional changes in the field of competences of local authorities;

- the necessary increase in the financial autonomy of local authorities;

- and mergers of local government units and inter-municipal co-operation.

All three areas have been addressed thoroughly by Ukrainian authorities, and the Congress welcomes the important changes that have already taken place.

Decentralisation is a long and inclusive process, and the Ukrainian population has proven to be ready for change à see opinion polls.

The Congress proposes tailor-made activities closely linked to its statutory work with a view to support the change of culture, and to accompany mayors and local councillors in responding to the needs of their citizens. We offer them our network, in particular Congress members from other European countries, who get involved in peer-to-peer exchanges and in sharing their political views.

Since 2014, more than 140 mayors and 120 local councillors benefited from exchanges on ways to enhance accountability and transparency in local policies and to systematically include citizens in local decision-making.

The Congress is about to launch a scheme to support local initiatives which will include a small grant along with coaching and peer reviews. This will enable mayors to engage a step further with their constituencies and local administrations.

The young local leaders involved in the Congress’ activities have shown great commitment and have proposed a number of projects they implement in their community. The Congress will continue supporting them, in particular by disseminating good practices across the country with a view to inspire other young Ukrainians to further engage at local level.