Kyiv officials’ lavish international trips raise local concerns

Kyiv’s officials spent over 5.57 million hryvnias from the city’s budget on international trips from February 2022 to September 2023. These expenses were covered by a program aimed at improving international relations. This is reported by Kashtan News.

The purpose was to continue reforming the city’s self-governance by learning from global practices. The mayor and deputy officials visited various countries to gain insights into better governance. These trips were deemed crucial for effective international influence and to support Kyiv and Ukraine during the conflict with Russia. The mayor visited eight countries during this period. Apart from the mayor, deputy mayors and department heads traveled to multiple countries to study various practices. This included examining transportation systems, urban infrastructure and cultural aspects.

However, some officials faced criticism with petitions demanding dismissals due to alleged failures in addressing local issues. Questions arose about the effectiveness of these trips in solving domestic problems. Budget allocations for international voyages contrasted with public concerns about local transportation, infrastructure development and governance issues. The discrepancy between foreign trips and local governance issues became a subject of public scrutiny.

The scrutiny extended to specific officials who faced petitions for dismissal based on their perceived inability to address local issues effectively. They visited many countries and cities: from Denver (USA) to Quebec (Canada), from Taipei (Taiwan) to Malaga (Spain), from Barcelona (Spain) to Edinburgh (United Kingdom). Kyiv’s official Mykola Povoroznyk had the opportunity to examine closely what happens far from Kyiv’s borders, having visited Brussels (Belgium) thrice. Maryna Khonda and Vladyslav Andronov visited Warsaw (Poland) twice.

The heads of Kyiv City State Administration’s departments also embarked on this journey of learning. Serhii Anzhiak, Ruslan Kandybor, Oksana Koltik, Roman Leliuk, Nataliia Melnyk, Dmytro Naumenko, Oleksandr Nikoriak (dismissed from office in June 2023), Oleh Polovynko (dismissed in August 2023), Boris Rabotnik, Volodymyr Repik, Ruslan Svitlyi, Olena Fidanyan, Yulia Khan and Nataliia Shamrai—14 department heads out of 24 such structures studied the latest practices. That’s the majority. The contrast between officials traveling abroad and the pressing needs of the city underscored concerns about the allocation of budgetary funds.