Municipal Local Economic Development - Ukraine

MLED promotes economic development and democracy in Ukraine

The Ukraine Municipal Local Economic Development Program (MLED) is an international partnership between Canadian and Ukrainian municipal sectors to promote economic growth in a strengthened democracy in 12 cities in the Lviv and Dnipropetrovsk oblasts.

The Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) signed an agreement in 2010 to implement the five-year program in partnership with the Association of Ukrainian Cities (AUC), and Ukraine´s Ministry of Economy, the Ministry of Regional Development and Construction, and the Ministry of Housing and Communal Services.

Together, they aim to improve planning and delivery of services that will foster economic growth and development, promote intergovernmental cooperation, and advance economic and political gender equality.

Since gaining independence in 1991, the Eastern European nation of 46 million has made steady progress in moving from a state-planned economy to a free market model, and from authoritarian rule to a more democratic system of government.

But local governments seeking to support economic development have been constrained by a number of factors, including shortcomings in the regulatory framework, inadequate planning capacity, financial challenges, and a shortage of skilled human resources.

FCM and Canadian municipalities sharing their "know-how" with their Ukrainian counterparts, showing them how they can better plan for the future, improve the local economic climate, and build partnerships to generate new sources of revenue.

A series of efforts are currently underway in developing and/or strengthening strategic economic development plans in each of the partner municipalities in Ukraine. The implementation of these plans will be supplemented by the facilitation of LED demonstration projects in cooperation with Canadian municipal partners. In order for the MLED team and some of the key partners to develop a better understanding of the best practices in Canada, a mission was recently conducted in which learning modules were developed based on engagement with thirteen (13) Canadian municipalities. In addition, work is being carried with the Association of Ukrainian Cities (AUC) to develop a strategic approach to enable economic development at the municipal level, increase the role of women in local governance, develop a policy advocacy framework and create a municipal performance monitoring system. 

The Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) is providing $13.9 million in core funding for the MLED, with another $3.1 million of in-kind contributions from FCM, AUC and municipalities in both countries.