The interactive panel discussion Parliament in Action: Digital Future and Innovations in the Work of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine took place at Ukraine’s Parliament on February 8. It marked the official launch of the RADA: Next Generation Program, funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), which has supported parliamentarism in Ukraine for 30 years.

The discussion consisted of two parts. The first was dedicated to plans for the digital transformation of deputies' work and communication with their constituents.

"Parliamentary reform is underway, and  a lot has already been done. My dream is to get this work at least 70 percent complete. But there are subsequent steps we need to take as a parliament to give society more opportunities to be informed about the Rada’s activities. And thanks to our inner digital transformation, the parliament will be more dynamic, flexible, modern, and innovative," First Deputy Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Oleksandr Kornienko said.

"USAID aims to remain an important assistant in implementing Ukrainian reforms. We had excellent cooperation with the RADA Program and hope that the updated RADA: Next Generation Program will help establish the Ukrainian Parliament as an accountable institution for the state's democratic development," said Mark Ellingstad, Director of the Office of Democracy and Governance at the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Regional Mission in Ukraine and Belarus.

Participants also discussed the roadmap for the Rada’s digital transformation.

"We must work on everything that will improve the work of our people in and out of parliament. At the beginning of the pandemic, we reacted very quickly and moved towards a model which allowed MPs to work remotely. Now we need to work on online tools, because this is the practice of world parliaments which have adapted to the current situation," Head of the Secretariat of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Vyacheslav Shtuchny explained.

Konstantin Kvurt, Head of the Board of the Internews Ukraine, which is implementing the program, noted that the senior level of the panel’s participants and the panel’s open dialogue demonstrated everyone's readiness to work towards improving the image of the Rada and the public’s trust in it.

The second part of the panel discussion was dedicated to electronic tools for legislative work and communications between Rada deputies and their constituents. The participants gave special focus to the cybersecurity issues, which have become increasingly important recently. Rada Deputies Oleksandr Fedienko and Pavlo Frolov, as well as the head of the Computer Systems Office of the Staff of the Verkhovna Rada Oleksiy Sydorenko, joined the discussion.

Director of the USAID RADA: Next Generation Program Ihor Kohut laid out the main goals of the program and areas of cooperation with the Verkhovna Rada. In addition to the digital transformation of parliament, the program will help involve the electorate in the legislative process and improve communication between citizens and Rada Deputies. The program will also strengthen the legislative and analytical capacity of the Verkhovna Rada, in particular by helping to establish a parliamentary research service and an office of legislative work.

RADA: Next Generation Program is funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The program is implemented by Internews Ukraine together with the following partners: the Westminster Foundation for Democracy (Great Britain), International Republican Institute (USA), American Councils for International Education (USA), Center for Political and Legal Reforms (Ukraine), and the Education Policy Development Agency (Ukraine).

Contact: Anastasia Chupis, [email protected], +380 99 295 44 23.