"Education is one of elements stabilizing the situation in the conflict zone," said Committee chairperson Lilia Hrynevych in the session hall of the Kramatorsk city council where the Committee convened its meeting on November 19.
The on-site meeting addressed the practice of application of legislative acts in Donetsk region regarding functioning of the educational sector in environment of the anti-terrorist operation. The Committee chairperson highlighted the protective role of education. In connection with the current complicated socio-political situation in Donetsk region and Luhansk region efforts of the educational sector are taken to protect rights of children and youth who live in the environment of the armed conflict, to provide access to education, to create comfortable conditions for all participants in the educational process, to renew operation of damaged educational institutions, to restore their material and technical base. The meeting participants moved propositions on draft laws of Ukraine "On education," "On vocational education" aiming at settling problems with provision of educational needs of children and youth in the zone of the anti-terrorist operation. Propositions also addressed legislative acts required to improve mechanisms of financing the educational sector. The speeches touched on difficulties in preparing and holding exams. They called for engaging representatives of educational institutions from the conflict zone in the work on preparing legislative acts on education, for drafting a purpose-oriented program to build housing for employees and students of educational institutions withdrawn from the temporarily occupied territory of Ukraine, and for acceleration of work to create a database of internally displaced persons, including children from the zone of the anti-terrorist operation finishing secondary schools.
The meeting yielded a recommendation to the Committee on Science and Education to include representatives of Donetsk and Luhansk regions in groups working at draft laws "On education," "On scientific and research activities," and "On vocational education." The Committee is also urged to consider propositions of teachers from Donetsk region sent to the Committee during the preparations for the on-site meeting.
Among 800 participants in the on-site meeting there were people's deputies of Ukraine - members of the Committee on Science and Education, employees of the Secretariat of the Committee, representatives of the National Academy of Pedagogical Science of Ukraine, employees of the Donetsk military-civil administration, employees of the department of education and science of the Donetsk military-civil administration, of the Donetsk regional institute of post-graduate studies of teachers, heads of educational departments of district state administrations, headmasters of educational institutions and principals of universities of Donetsk region.
Following the on-site meeting of the Committee there were meetings of employees of the Committee and participants of the on-site meeting with students and teachers of universities of Donetsk region, Kramatorsk State Engineering Academy, and representatives of pre-school institutions, schools, and vocational schools. Participants in the on-site meeting gave a press conference.
Note: on April 2, 2015, the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Science and Education convened an on-site meeting in Severodonetsk, Luhansk region. The meeting addressed provision of educational needs of various categories of citizens in the environment of the anti-terrorist operation and a set of measures aiming at provision of rights and freedoms of children whose life was affected by the armed conflict in the east of Ukraine.