UNECE has mobilised international architects to help the city of Mykolaiv, Ukraine's ninth largest city, develop a forward-looking, people-centred master plan for building back better. This work will be led by One Work, a global design and architecture company, in collaboration with Ukrainian architects, following discussions between the City Council and international architects that were facilitated by UNECE.
The Chairman of the City Council, Mr. Dmytro Falko, expressed his appreciation of this partnership, noting that it will help the city ensure full and complete adherence with international standards and best practices throughout the planning and reconstruction effort. One Work Project Manager, Ms. Ana Paez, said that the company will be supporting the city pro bono and work closely with Ukrainian architects and experts to realize the aspirations of the city leaders and citizens.
Ukraine's Vice-Minister of Communities and Territories Development, Mr. Ihor Korhovyi, underlined the importance of pilot testing such partnerships to serve as a blueprint for nationally-owned collaborative approaches for other cities' reconstruction efforts to follow. He invited the international community to intensify its support to Ukrainian cities, noting that such support must focus on addressing both the emergency humanitarian needs resulting from the war and the cities' long term strategic goals. He drew attention that emergency relief should involve building the administrative and management capacity of cities, so as to enable them to address the humanitarian needs of inhabitants across all communities and age groups and ensure successful reconstruction after the war.
UNECE will be supporting the city of Mykolaiv in line with the Framework for Programmes for the Integrated Rehabilitation of Settlements and Territories of Ukraine, which was developed by the Ministry for Communities and Territories Development of Ukraine to guide local governments in their reconstruction efforts. UNECE has helped the Ministry further develop the Framework and is currently pilot testing it in the City of Kharkiv, the second largest city in Ukraine, within the context of the #UN4Kharkiv Initiative. The initiative brings together 12 UN agencies and is coordinated by UNECE. At present, activities are focused on the development of a master plan for Kharkiv, which is being led by the Norman Foster Foundation on a pro-bono basis working closely with Ukrainian architects.
UNECE will draw on the experience gained from the #UN4Kharkiv Initiative to help the city of Mykolaiv build back better.
