The USAID RADA Next Generation Program brought together more than 140 representatives of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, government, international organizations, civil society, donors, and media aiming to discuss:
how to ensure the transparency of the Ukrainian Parliament under martial law;
what parliamentary diplomacy should look like for the sake of victory, post-war reconstruction and Ukraine's accession to the EU.
The event took place on the day of the despicable russian missile attacks, so the participants honored the memory of the victims with a minute of silence. “We will never forget those people who are giving us the opportunity to be here right now and we need to think about how we will develop our country and build its future,” mentioned Andriy Kulakov, moderator of the event and Communications Director of the USAID RADA: Next Generation Program.
The conference included more than 3 hours of hot discussions. According to Oleksandr Korniyenko, the First Vice Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, “the discussion will not be a warm bath,” as the agenda contained complex important issues for the Parliament.
The Deputy Director of the USAID RADA: Next Generation Program Tetyana Bibik noted that “parliament should play a key role in preserving democracy. Modern challenges to democracy no longer correspond to traditional structures and resources.” According to Bibik, in order to cope with existing threats, the Parliament has to improve on constant grounds its procedures through innovations and actively engage with civil society to strengthen public trust in institutions.
Follow the conference via the video in Ukrainian and in English).
The USAID RADA: The Next Generation Program organized the Conference on the occasion of the International Day of Parliamentarism. This was an opportunity to concentrate on the state, challenges and prospects of parliamentarism in Ukraine, as well as to discuss ways to enhance the Ukrainian Parliament and democratic procedures.