Workshop on Visioning for Regional Development - Uzhgorod, 22 September 2006
As the next step of the ‘train the trainers’ workshop, two workshops on visioning for regional development was held in Uzhgorod on September 22. The goal of the workshop was to involve stakeholders, in particular members of the councils and working groups for regional development, to build a common understanding of strategic planning steps and approaches, methodology, and practical steps to developing a vision in each pilot oblast.
Representatives of the local executive authorities, self-government bodies, Regional Development Council, Coordination Council on the Development of a Strategy for Regional Development, the coalition of NGOs “For Future of Zakarpattya” and other civil society organizations, and representatives of business and academia participated in the workshop, which was facilitated by RGD Project regional strategic planning experts, Oleg Luksha and Oxana Stankiewicz. A Canadian strategic planning expert, Dr. Gary Davidson, advised on the workshop’s approaches and format.
During the workshop, participants discussed and defined the major priorities of Zakarpattya oblast’s development. As a result of the workshop, a joint vision of Zakarpattya oblast’s development was elaborated: “Zakarpattya is an economically autonomous, pollution-free, tourism and recreation focused, CEE and boundary region of Ukraine with its unique nature, distinctive culture and historical heritage, high educational level of its citizens, and revived old traditions of community self-governance. It is a region that ensures sustainable development, equal opportunities for all residents, balanced development of urban and rural territories, business development, and friendly, mutually beneficial relationships with neighbouring regions and countries.”
This workshop aimed to strengthen further collaboration among all project stakeholders to develop and implement a strategy for the development of the pilot oblasts. Based on the results of the workshops, the second stage of the strategic planning process – creating a vision with the input of the public – has begun in Zakarpattya oblast.
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