A meeting was held at the Ministry of Communities and Territories Development with representatives of JASPERS, dedicated to the next steps in providing advisory support from the European Investment Bank (EIB) for the implementation of the Public Investment Management Reform Roadmap.
The meeting was attended by the First Deputy Minister of Communities and Territories Development of Ukraine, Aliona Shkrum, Deputy Minister Marina Denysiuk, as well as the Head of the EIB Office in Ukraine, Kristyna Mikulova, EIB/JASPERS Division Manager Luis Hebrero Rodriguez, and Senior JASPERS Economist Martin Pospishil.
The participants discussed the plan for joint work, taking into account the Single Project Portfolio (SPP), which will be prioritized for receiving JASPERS' advisory and technical assistance.
JASPERS' support will involve assistance at the national, regional, and local levels in project preparation—ranging from planning to implementation—according to EU standards, which will increase the likelihood of securing EU funding.
According to Aliona Shkrum, the Ministry holds the largest portfolio of policies and, therefore, requires the involvement of international partners' resources to provide not only sectoral support but also expert assistance to the communities and regions that need it the most.
"Communities in front-line regions, such as Kherson, require strengthening of institutional capacity due to a significant shortage of personnel. We are in the difficult context of war, and as such, projects are being prioritized by sectors: infrastructure, transport, central heating, water supply and sewage, energy efficiency, and social housing construction. Regarding the latter, it is important to conduct an objective economic impact assessment for those communities and territories where this infrastructure will be built, with the support of partners," said Aliona Shkrum.
As noted by Deputy Minister Marina Denysiuk, the Ministry’s cooperation with the JASPERS team is currently expanding in accordance with the new advisory mandate for Ukraine. This includes the reform of public investment management.
"Our task is to coordinate projects and set priorities within the framework of the public investment management reform, which the Ministry of Communities and Territories Development is implementing together with the Ministry of Economy and the Ministry of Finance. Cooperation with the EIB and JASPERS within the framework of the reform involves implementing new planning tools, developing key procedures and methodologies for preparing, monitoring, and evaluating public investment projects, which will increase the effectiveness of fund usage. We are grateful to our partners for their contribution to strengthening the capacity of our institutions both at the national and local levels. Our goal is to teach communities how to prepare more 'mature' projects and implement them," said Marina Denysiuk.
According to JASPERS representatives, their activities focus on providing technical support to Ukraine in the preparation of investment projects in line with EU requirements and standards. Their assistance focuses on two key areas: strategic planning and the development of detailed methodologies for implementing the most effective and economically viable reconstruction projects. Current cooperation with the Ministry is focused on developing new logistics routes, supporting the development of transport infrastructure, the energy sector, water supply and sewage systems, and public-private partnership projects.
Regarding EIB support for implementing investment projects at the local level, EIB Division Manager Luis Hebrero Rodriguez noted that pilot projects could be developed, based on the experience gained from which other communities could prepare and implement their own investment projects.
Partners also emphasized the importance of ensuring clear project implementation and monitoring processes, as well as the application of systematic evaluation methods for results.
