The Verkhovna Rada continues to implement the Model Committee initiative
19 April 2021, 17:05
The Verkhovna Rada continues to implement the Model Committee initiative of the USAID RADA Program. The project is aimed at improving the cooperation of the committees of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine with the Government and line ministries, performing control functions by the committees, strengthening the staff capacity of the secretariats of the committees. In addition, it helps to increase the level of publicity of the work of committees, involve the public and other stakeholders in the activities of committees, strengthen the interaction of committees with international partners.
During the three months of the Model Committee project, the functional audit of the secretariats of the model committees was conducted. The audit is aimed at analyzing the needs and requests of committees in terms of their cooperation with stakeholders and the organization of internal parliamentary work, optimizing the functioning of committee secretariats. The results of the functional audit were presented in mid-March to the leadership of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine.
The staff of the secretariats of the committees underwent the comprehensive training program, which included online trainings and thematic seminars, some of which were attended by experts from the Westminster Foundation for Democracy. The experts shared international experience (especially the experience of the United Kingdom) on the cooperation of committees with ministries and stakeholders, strengthening the control function of committees and post-legislative control, conducting public consultations.
The functional audit conducted by experts of the Model Committee project in January 2021 showed that the model committees are particularly interested in establishing cooperation with international stakeholders - relevant parliamentary committees and ministries of other countries, international organizations and donor structures, which work or implement projects in sectors related to committee matters.
One of the tasks of the project is to promote international cooperation of the committees participating in the initiative. In particular, at the request of the USAID RADA Program, the Secretariat of the Cabinet of Ministers received information on the list of international technical assistance projects currently being implemented in Ukraine under the auspices of the Model Committees. Within each of the model committees, work is under way to establish the register of international partners, including donor organizations that provide assistance in sectoral reforms.