The Ministry for Communities, Territories, and Infrastructure Development of Ukraine team presented the Geographic Information System (GIS) for monitoring and evaluating the development of regions and communities.
The GIS will become a key digital tool for regional policy, as it will provide access to various regional data, including data on destruction, changes in population, number of legal entities, access to social services, functional types of territories, etc. The information will be presented as layers on an interactive map.
- GIS is a powerful tool for implementing state regional development policy. The system streamlines the work with regional statistics data, transferring them from paper to digital format. We will receive data on the actual state of communities and territories, which is the basis for effective planning and transparent use of budget funds. In addition, the GIS indicators will be harmonized with the European ones, which will allow Ukraine to access the best EU funding policies and programs, - said Oleksandr Kubrakov, Deputy Prime Minister for Restoration of Ukraine, Minister for Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development of Ukraine.
The GIS system consists of a public part accessible to all, as well as an administrative part for entering verified data, planning, and control, which will be available to communities, regional administrations, and government organizations. The GIS also offers a unified framework for structuring planning documents, allowing for automated definition of regional development objectives and indicators.
- A year ago, we developed and approved the creation of the Damaged and Destroyed Property Register (DDPR), which contains verified data on losses from the russian invasion. Today, the DDPR has already been integrated into the DREAM digital ecosystem, and the integration of the Prozorro procurement system and the Unified State Electronic System in construction is underway. And now the Geographic Information System, which will become a source of data on strategic planning documents of communities and regions, and thus will allow prioritizing recovery projects, - said Olena Shulyak, Chairperson of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on State Building, Local Self-Government, Regional Development, and Urban Planning.
Oleksandra Azarkhina, Deputy Minister of Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development of Ukraine, said the launch of the GIS system will create a single digital cycle of strategic planning, implementation, and control of regional development.
- We are moving from formal visions to clear indicators and targets for regional development. Based on the updated State Regional Development Strategy, hromadas are developing their development programs with a list of projects that will have priority in attracting funding. We will have an opportunity to monitor the effectiveness of each project, each investment, and their impact on the development of the community and the region, - explained Oleksandra Azarkhina.
Basic GIS functions will be developed in May and presented in June 2024. The system's next version will allow for modeling community development scenarios and conducting data-driven planning based on collected data.
It will also assess the effectiveness of the State Fund of Regional Development (SFRD) expenditures and compile an investment index for individual communities and regions. The DREAM digital restoration ecosystem for accountable management will be integrated with GIS to ensure data exchange between both systems. That will allow for the evaluation of initiated projects for compliance with planning and strategic documents at various levels.
