On November 1, the Swiss-Ukrainian project “Ukraine’s Cohesion and Regional Development “, UCORD and the Regional Development Agency of the Odesa region signed a grant agreement, the purpose of which is to provide institutional support to the agency for its transformation into an effective platform that will unite and coordinate the efforts of local, regional, national and international entities for the sustainable development of Odesa.
The partnership of the UCORD project with Odesa Oblast takes place within the framework of the Memorandum of Cooperation signed in May of this year between the project, the Odesa Oblast Military Administration, the Odesa Oblast Council and the Agency for Regional Development of Odesa Oblast.
“The Regional Development Agency of the Odesa region has already achieved good results for its region. At the same time, the UCORD project seeks to support the agency in building its sustainable and integrated institutional structure, which is complemented by cooperation at the regional level in the areas of water supply, sanitation and waste management, as well as culture, dialogue and social cohesion. Therefore, we are counting on fruitful joint work to strengthen the agency and help it implement a number of projects aimed at the development of the region,” said UCORD project manager Maryna Bryl.
The Regional Development Agency of the Odesa Region is a non-budgetary and non-profit organization whose main task is to increase the investment attractiveness of the region by developing and implementing projects that meet the priorities of the regional development strategy and the State Regional Development Strategy.
The agency’s activities focus on such areas as creating conditions for institutional and infrastructural recovery and development of communities in the region; support of small and medium-sized businesses; implementation of innovative technologies and energy efficiency programs; support for the development of industrial parks; cooperation with the agricultural sector and others.
“Signing the agreement is an important stage for us and our partners. We aspire to create conditions for the involvement of communities, support of local business and development of our infrastructure, – said the Director of the Agency, Serhiy Kononenko. “Cooperation with international partners, such as Switzerland, allows implementing the best practices of sustainable development, which will help make Odesa an example of successful regional development.”
Within the framework of the grant agreement, actions will be supported in the following areas of RDA’s activity:
- Support for the development of the communities of Odesa through mentoring and coaching, increasing their potential and capacity building in the field of international cooperation and investment management, sharing experience in the field of municipal development, assistance in creating and supporting local development projects, improving the communities’ capacities in the field of territory promotion, and others activities
- Support and stimulation of local entrepreneurship and business for development and export. In particular, the agency will create craft catalogs to promote the products of local enterprises, organize systematic educational programs and consulting support for businesses. In addition, there are several cluster initiatives in the Odesa region, but none of them is registered as a cluster. RDA plans to organize consultations with representatives of these initiatives and help them to cope with the problems that prevent them from becoming full-fledged clusters, as well as attract expert support for training these business communities.
- Support of cultural development through the development of cultural and social centers, as well as branding of the region through the cultural and creative segment. Among the main tasks are the organization of cultural events, support of local cultural initiatives and popularization of the cultural potential of Odesa.
- Support for social adaptation and employment of persons affected by the war. The agency plans to conduct an analytical study of the veteran community of the region regarding their employment prospects, existing veteran support programs, and advise them on employment opportunities.
- Proper management and transparency of the agency itself. This includes regular performance evaluations, implementation of corporate plans. The RDA will also actively engage with key stakeholders to ensure diverse representation in decision-making bodies and support good governance at all levels.
We congratulate the Regional Development Agency of the Odesa region on this important step and wish success in the implementation of all plans!
The Swiss-Ukrainian project “Ukraine’s Cohesion and Regional Development”, UCORD is implemented with the support of Switzerland via the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, by NIRAS Sweden AB.