From the 4th till 9th of February team of a German-Ukrainian Bureau along with a group of German experts, - Rebecca Harms, MEP (2004-2019), Miriam Kosmehl, Bertelsmann Stiftung, Sabine Fischer, SWP, and Andreas Umland, Stockholm Centre for Eastern European Studies - visited Ukraine. During the field trip expert group visited Kyiv, the cities of Bucha, Borodianka, Moshchun and Irpin around Kyiv and Chernihiv region. The purpose of the trip was to speak with local civil society, mayors, and city councilors - to get an understanding of their interaction and critically their needs when it comes to the fast recovery in war and the long-term recovery and development plans for after the war.
In Kyiv an expert group had meetings with the Head of the State Agency for Reconstruction and Development of Infrastructure, Mustafa Nayyem, and Deputy Minister of Infrastructure of Ukraine, Oleksandra Azarkhina, deputies of Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine as well as with representatives of leading think tanks and NGOs. In the center of discussions were such topics as EU-accession, the recovery process in Ukrainian regions and the importance of local communities and actors.
The Kyiv region was heavily affected by the russian occupation. The group visited there the village of Moshchun, which is part of the Hostomel Community, Borodianka, Bucha, and Irpin. Despite the global attention due to horrendous war crimes committed by the russian forces, the region still needs the assistance of international donors and partners of Ukraine.
In the Chernihiv region the expert group visited Chernihiv, Mena and Nizhyn cities and Yahidne village, met with city mayors, representatives of local civil society, and local government officials to discuss the challenges and priorities of local recovery for communities following the russian occupation and military actions. The discussions also focused on strengthening social cohesion and the importance of supporting the local economy.
The trip was organized as a part of the project “Local Resilience & Recovery: Capacities of Ukrainian Civil Society in the Chernihiv Region”, supported by Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung (bpb).
