The impetus to the creation of self-organized groups following the Revolution of Dignity of 2014 heralded a new significance for this discussion, titled "Civil Society in Ukraine: Quo Vadis?"

 

In order to ensure continual development, a "stocktaking" of civil society in Ukraine is required to better understand its purpose, attributes of organizations and institutions, and the types that operate including their main prospects and needs. That's why, UNDP commissioned a mapping study of Ukrainian civil society organizations to contribute to an improved understanding of civil society's self-identification, enabling the determination of goals and ways to sustain its development in Ukraine.

 

"Currently, civil society in Ukraine is diverse and rapidly growing. It continues to gain experience and become a full-fledged party to the social-political and economic development of the country. The pressing task of the government, politicians, businesses, and citizens is to support and develop civil society and its organizations," emphasised Lubov Palyvoda, a leading expert of the Working Group on study preparation.

 

Featured during the discussion, this study defines civil society in the Ukrainian context, specifies the term and attributes of a civil society organization, lists types of organizations that qualify as civil society organizations (CSOs), and identifies obstacles and needs these organizations have in terms of their development and growth. The key conclusions of the study were incorporated into the National Strategy for Civil Society Development in Ukraine (2016-2020), which was approved by the President of Ukraine on 26 February 2016.

 

Speaking at the event, UNDP Head of Strategic Advisory Unit in Ukraine Marcus Brand underlined that the discussion filled a need for important dialogue on civil society development in the country.

 

"UNDP seeks to focus on the need for reinvigorated efforts as part of the agenda for organizational change towards innovative relationships with the diversity of civil society actors," he said.

 

The event was conducive to getting ideas for what needs to be done in civil society development and sparked further discussion among civic activists, authorities, and international organisations.

 

This initiative is organised under the framework of Democratization, Human Rights and Civil Society Development Programme in Ukraine, implemented by UNDP and funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark.