Anti-corruption work in a city council depends on everyone who prepares, approves and votes on decisions: council members, heads of departments, public servants and authorised persons on corruption prevention and detection. This idea ran through the two-day trainings on anti-corruption and integrity held in Poltava and Chernivtsi with the support of the EUACI. The trainings aimed to help cities make decision-making more transparent, strengthen integrity and prevent corruption at every stage.
The trainings in the two cities brought together 53 participants. Participants looked at national and international anti-corruption standards, ethical principles for local self-government, and how openness and accountability build residents’ trust in local authorities. They also discussed how to organise anti-corruption work in a city council, manage corruption risks, and prevent and resolve conflicts of interest. Other topics included asset declarations and how corruption reporting systems work.
Practical cases reflected situations participants face in their daily work, from land issues and municipal property management to procurement, personnel decisions and the work of municipal enterprises. One of the topic covered was recognising risks in draft decisions, the stage at which corruption can be stopped before it happens.
In Poltava, heads of departments and authorised persons also practised working together, from spotting risks when approving draft acts to handling corruption reports.
“Poltava values its participation in the EUACI Integrity Cities programme. The programme’s activities help introduce integrity mechanisms into the work of local self-government bodies, which improves their effectiveness and strengthens public support. Training events increase the competence and integrity of officials,” said Vitalii Nikipelov, Deputy Mayor for the Activities of Executive Bodies, Poltava City Council.
In Chernivtsi, council members used the corruption risk assessment to prepare proposals for the city council’s Integrity Plan for 2027–2029. The plan sets out how the city will prevent corruption and make its work more transparent in the coming years.
“This training helped us structure our knowledge and better understand how to act in specific situations. The city council currently has no dedicated unit for corruption prevention and detection. During the training, we discussed why it is important to organise this work systematically, and gathered council members’ feedback and proposals on setting up such a unit,” — Uliana Onufriichuk, Head of the Organisational Work and Control Department, Chernivtsi City Council.
The EUACI continues to support Integrity Cities and other partner cities in introducing tools for transparent, accountable and integrity-based governance.
