Key Priorities and Synergies highlighted in Ukrainian Donor project coordination meeting

More than 100 representatives of the donor-funded projects together with the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine gathered for the second time to discuss the achievement of synergies in preparation of strategic documents covering climate issues at the national and regional levels, as well as agree on providing policy advice for implementation of small-scale decentralized renewable energy projects to identify ways to overcome barriers and initiate possible cooperation between project implementers.   

In her opening remarks Deputy Minister Viktoriia Kyreieva noted that even during the war, Ukraine reached great progress – the 2035 climate strategy was adopted, the climate law registered in the Verkhovna Rada, the ETS strategy is being currently discussed, and soon the work on a low-carbon development strategy will start.  

During the first working group participants identified the recommendations on top priority policies and measures as well as developed some recommendations for strategic documents. All parties agreed that it is necessary to prioritize green criteria in reconstruction, align national and EU plans and targets, as well as national and regional targets within Ukraine. For these purposes there’s a need to establish corresponding working groups and interministerial coordination to achieve the best results. 

Ilka Starrost, Head of project „Capacity Development for Climate Policy in the countries of Southeastern and Eastern Europe, Southern Caucasus and Central Asia, Phase III” stressed that the project will continue its support and will focus on two main areas – support EU accession on climate related matters and will intensify work on green reconstruction of Ukraine.  

The second working group was focused on the small-scale renewable energy projects and regional capacity development. The participants of the group agreed that the capacities of municipalities should be built based on match-making mechanism, mentorship programs shall be introduced, and more programs focused on women training shall be developed. Another part of the discussion was dedicated to energy goods accessibility and mechanism for its development, such as sustainable financing and removal of bureaucratic obstacles, which will help to boost small-scale projects.  

Karin Franzen, project director and Co-chair of the Secretariat of the German-Ukrainian Energy Partnership, GIZ, concluded that the project will continue to strengthen Ukrainian energy security by implementing donation campaign to restore the infrastructure, and hope that this event will help to boost the small-scale projects. 

The comprehensive report of the event will be shared soon to continue the exchange and cooperation. 

The event was co-organized jointly by the Ukrainian Climate Office, which operates within the framework of the Capacities for Climate Action (C4CA) project, implemented by GIZ on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection (BMWK) within the framework of the International Climate Initiative (IKI) and co-funded by the European Union, together with the Secretariat of the German-Ukrainian Energy Partnership project implemented by GIZ on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK).