Project profile — Dialogue for Reform and Social Cohesion in Ukraine

This project's objective is to support dialogue efforts between Ukraine's central government and regional stakeholders, and among groups with the potential for improving social cohesion within Ukraine. Promoting dialogue between Ukrainian government officials and communities in conflict- affected Eastern Ukraine and within groups able to promote social cohesion is considered to be critical to reducing social tensions and insecurity in the country.

This project will result in increased social cohesion in Eastern Ukraine by supporting dialogue between the Ukrainian government, regional stakeholders and groups with the potential for improving social cohesion.

Results achieved at the end of the project (April 2020) include: (1) increased capacity of Ukrainian mediators and dialogue facilitators by developing and conducting online and in-person 4-day trainings to more than 1000 individuals online and 300 individuals in-person; (2) supported dialogue between central government and local citizens by holding 2 forums per year in government-controlled areas of Donbas. These forums allowed local actors to raise areas of concern to central government officials; and (3) built interregional dialogue with national minorities and business communities by supporting discussion platforms and workshops between central government ministries and regional civil society. This initiative resulted in the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) being placed first place among organizations that conducted dialogues in 2014-2018 based on a survey-based study conducted to 109 dialogue participants from 17 oblasts of Ukraine.