Since 2021, the municipality has been actively working with U-LEAD with Europe, an initiative that helps local self-government build capacity, become more transparent and prepare for challenges. Over the years, the municipality has made notable progress in digitalisation, improving administrative services, strategic planning, staff capacity-building and social support for residents even during wartime.
“Mezhova is an example of sustainable international partnerships in the oblast. The municipality is currently going through tough times. Every day, the enemy shells the territory, destroying infrastructure and depriving people who remain in front-line villages of the most basic living conditions. The constant threat to people’s lives creates additional danger. Yet, the municipality continues to provide administrative services to residents of both the starosta districts and the central estate. The mobile Administrative Services Centre (the ASC) provided by U-LEAD helps accomplish this task,” says Olena Tertyshna, the Head of the Regional Office in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast.
ASC that kept going even in wartime
Even before 2021, Mezhova municipality, with the support of U-LEAD with Europe, opened a modern Administrative Services Centre and received a mobile case for on-site services. The ASC created nine jobs, and the staff underwent special training.
When the war placed unprecedented challenges upon the municipality, this experience and support from partners helped maintain what was most important — the accessibility of services for people. The municipality was one of the first in Ukraine to receive, with the assistance of U-LEAD, a mobile ASC — a specialised bus equipped with a ramp, internet access and workstations for administrators.
The mobile office travels to remote villages and affected residents, where employees help people apply for assistance, record property damage through DIIA or receive humanitarian aid.
Thanks to generators provided by U-LEAD, the ASC continued to receive citizens even during power outages. This allowed the municipality to maintain control and public trust during the most difficult months of previous years that were affected by blackouts.
Nowadays, although the municipality’s operations have changed due to daily shelling, the assistance provided by U-LEAD enables decisions to be made in the most critical situations. As noted by Tetiana Bondyk, the Head of the Administrative Services Centre, which was relocated to Dnipro, the Services Centre has fully restored the provision of administrative services, and she is able to visit the settlements of the municipality weekly thanks to the mobile office provided by U-LEAD.
“Today, Mezhova exemplifies the true resilience of the administrative services system, showcasing readiness to work even in crisis: relocated municipal enterprises continue to function, and critically important areas of life in the front-line municipality are supported by the efforts of those employees who, despite the threats, continue to live and work in the municipality,” says Viacheslav Nevinchanyi, a Policy Advisor for Municipal Management and Recovery at the Regional Office of U-LEAD with Europe in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast.
From strategy to recovery plan
The groundwork for the municipality’s strategic development was laid back in 2018, when the first Development Strategy was revised with the support of U-LEAD with Europe. The Head of Mezhova Settlement Council Volodymyr Zrazhevskyi notes that this document formed the basis for further steps — and helped to create a vision of further post-war development in wartime.
Unfortunately, the municipality’s plans are currently suspended due to the complicated front-line situation, but the municipality will be sure to advance them once the situation allows for their implementation. The municipality has strong arguments for this, since back in 2023, Mezhova was among the winners of U-LEAD’s competitive selection to participate in the professional network for designing municipal development plans. Mezhova was included in the list of 48 municipalities in Ukraine that, together with U-LEAD experts, developed their documents.
The systematic efforts in those years allowed Mezhova to create the Comprehensive Municipal Recovery and Restoration Programme that tackled housing, infrastructure, healthcare, education, environment protection and safety. It was devised in close cooperation with advisers from the Regional Office of U-LEAD with Europe. Volodymyr Zrazhevskyi emphasises that in peacetime, the experience gained with the support of U-LEAD will lay the foundation for a plan to rebuild the municipality, which is currently being destroyed by the enemy.
Social transport: help on wheels
In 2024, cooperation with U-LEAD brought the municipality new social protection opportunities.
Mezhova received a special-purpose Renault Master minibus and a pickup truck for social transportation purposes. At that time, this enabled the launch of the first social route, which was used by elderly people, persons with disabilities and residents with limited mobility. Nowadays, this vehicle is also used for evacuation needs.
The acquisition of the vehicle was facilitated by the Memorandum of Partnership signed between the Mezhova Settlement Council and U-LEAD with Europe. This is how the municipality received international technical assistance without using its own budget funds.
A municipality that learns and grows
Mezhova consistently invests in building the capacity of its team. Officials of the Settlement Council participated in programmes that help — even in the tough conditions of a front-line municipality — to make informed decisions with regards to strategic planning, education, spatial development and investment attraction. Municipal officials believe that this knowledge will help them to function effectively both in frontline conditions and during recovery.
The experience of cooperation with U-LEAD helps the municipality of Mezhova to seek partnerships and actively attract support.
“Mezhova municipality is an example of how an investment in staff training has facilitated resilience of the locality,” concludes Olena Tertyshna.
Today, Mezhova lives and works in extremely difficult conditions, relying on the trust of residents and the support of international partners. The experience of cooperation with U-LEAD with Europe has shown that even in tough times, the municipality has a strategy, keeps its team together and stays ready to act.
“We are grateful to U-LEAD with Europe for their support and commitment to the needs of our municipality, and we look forward to further cooperation. After all, we have a common goal — to persevere and win. That is why, even when the front-line conditions are dire, the municipality of Mezhova continues to live and work,” says Volodymyr Zrazhevskyi, the Head of Mezhova Settlement Council.
