On January 18, the Forum of IDP Councils under local state administrations and territorial communities of Rivnenska Oblast was held.
The event, held in Rivne, was attended by representatives of 38 IDP Councils of the oblast and representatives of the authorities and the civil society sector.
“When the IDP Councils were first established under the Civil-Military Administration, it seemed like just paperwork because there was no vision or tools to know what to do, how to do it, and why. Now, we have already held four meetings and developed a separate set of documents. We have a strategic operating plan for 2024 and know how to move forward. We want to be ready to help those IDPs who are already here and those who will come. We want the powerful network that already exists — 36 IDP Councils in communities, 2 in the raion, and one oblast Council — to really work as a single mechanism, not just be on paper,” says Lesia Myronets-Matushchenko, head of the IDP Council under the Rivnenska Oblast State Administration / Civil-Military Administration.
This event was a valuable platform for coordinating efforts to implement the State Policy Strategy on Internal Displacement until 2025. Local authorities’ plans for 2024 in the implementation of the state policy on ensuring the rights and freedoms of IDPs were presented to the general public.
“As a consultative and advisory body, IDP Councils provide effective coordination and support to IDPs in local communities. They facilitate the integration of IDPs and increase the potential of communities for development. Collaborative, integrated work allows for the rapid resolution of many highly relevant issues to IDPs. IDP Councils can directly influence decision-making in the communities that host them. They are the driver of this process, working selflessly and devoting their time, knowledge, and skills to this noble task,” said Dermot Hamilton, Executive Director of the Charity Foundation “Stabilization Support Services”, during his speech at the Forum.
This publication was made possible as part of the United Voices in Action program, implemented by the international organization IREX in Ukraine together with the Ukrainian Charity Foundation “Stabilization Support Services” and with the support of the U.S. Department of State.
