Signing of an agreement for the establishment of a local democracy agency in Vinnytsia. – © O. Lavoustet
As part of the International Regional Meetings, the Bourgogne-Franche Region
Comté welcomed, at the Regional Council in Dijon, a Ukrainian delegation made up of elected officials from the Oblast region and the town of Vinnytsia. This welcome was part of a partnership currently being finalized between the Region, the Oblast, Dijon metropolis and Vinnytsia. The Ukrainian delegation consisted of Anatoliy Tkach, Vice President of the Oblast, Vladyslav Skalskyi, Deputy Mayor of Vinnytsia, Olha Oliinyk, head of the Regional Association of Local Self-Governments, and Lillia Atnazheva, head of the Association civic initiatives of Ukraine (two structures based in Vinnytsia).
Marie-Guite Dufay, president of the Region, declared: “solidarity induces a form of mutual responsibility towards each other. In this spirit, since the start of Russian aggression in February 2022 in Ukraine, we have been building, with Dijon metropolis, links with the Oblast and the city of Vinnytsia. We will soon formalize this decentralized cooperation partnership with our Ukrainian counterparts. This year, the Region thus renewed its support for the Vinnytsia Oblast with aid of €150,000 granted to the French NGO Acted established there. Ultimately, beyond institutional cooperation, we are counting on academic, health and economic exchanges.”
In order to facilitate these future cooperation projects, the various partners have signed an agreement with the European Association for Local Democracy which will open an office in Vinnytsia during
2025.
“This is an essential step in structuring lasting support from the Burgundy-Franche-Comté Region to our Ukrainian partners in Vinnytsia. Local authorities are key players in decentralized cooperation. And the reconstruction of a stronger Ukraine requires in particular more effective decentralization,” welcomed Patrick Molinoz, the vice-president in charge of European policies and international actions.
