Regional Development Strategy monitoring system is being developed in Zakarpattya
"Regional Governance and Development" Project (RGD) in cooperation with Zakarpattya Oblast State Administration began to work towards improving the system for monitoring and evaluation of Zakarpattya Regional Development Strategy implementation that was approved by the Regional Council on
December 28, 2006.
On April 8, the first workshop on «Improving the Monitoring System of Regional Development Strategies» was held in Zakarpattya. Representatives of oblast state authorities, NGOs, public, academia and businesses took part in the workshop. As explained by Maria Popadynets, Regional Manager in Zakarpattya oblast, the workshop participants were to develop an optimal monitoring strategy and identify agencies or organizations that could take over coordination and management of this process.
Bohdan Wynnyckyi, RGD Canadian Expert, informed participants about the experience of the neighboring Lviv oblast where the monitoring system was developed within the framework of the regional development project implementation. Providing an example of a Canadian best practice in this context, he discussed the Partnership Program for the Development of the Niagara Escarpment in the Canadian province of Ontario. Initiated in 1998, this is a case of a wide range of participant involvement in monitoring the strategic plans with respect to the escarpment; involved were the University of Waterloo, the Ministry of Environmental Protection, and the public. The program was considered a great success while each partner also benefiting greatly: students gained the experience, the university received wider recognition, and the government made significant savings in funding.
Myroslava Lendel, RGD Monitoring and Evaluation Expert, introduced the similar experience of international technical assistance projects (DFID, USAID) in Ukraine. She also encouraged the participants to get involved in the discussion about the performance of the regional strategy monitoring. She mentioned that the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine intends to develop a monitoring system for the National Strategy for Regional Development and suggested that two regions, Zakarpattya and Zaporizhzhya, develop such systems locally. The positive experiences from the regions will be shared among other oblasts in Ukraine.
While working in groups, workshop participants discussed several options regarding an agency, which could coordinate the Strategy monitoring process. One of the suggestions was to create an advisory body under the auspices of the Oblast State Administration or a special department within Zakarpattya Oblast Council. It was also suggested that these activities could be carried out by one of the Regional Development Agencies already operating in the oblast. It was agreed that a summary of RGD Project’s recommendations should be prepared and submitted to Zakarpattya Oblast State Administration to inform their decision-making in this area.
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