On October 31, representatives from the authorities, public organizations, and security service providers gathered in Kherson to establish a platform for open dialogue on the security and restoration of the Kherson community.
The meeting was attended by representatives of the Kherson City Military Administration, the departments of civil protection of the population, healthcare, education, social and humanitarian work, the children's service, the department of economics and investments of the Kherson City Council, public organizations and charitable foundations, the Patrol Police in the Kherson region, the Kherson District Police Department, the Kherson District Department of Civil Protection and Preventive Activities of the Main Department of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in the Kherson region, the Educational and Methodological Center for Civil Protection and Life Safety of the Kherson region.
To enhance public security and resilience in the Kherson community, the Working Group on Public Safety and Recovery was established, comprising representatives from the aforementioned structures and organizations.
Yaroslav Shanko, head of the Kherson City Military Administration, noted during the meeting: “The Kherson Group should become a center of coordination and dialogue: a place where the authorities, the community, and partners work together on a safe, sustainable, and united future for our city.”
Yurii Antoshchuk, head of the “Union” Foundation, presented the experience of such working groups in other communities of the Kherson region, as well as the initial results of a focus group study with residents of the Kherson community on their perception of existing risks in Kherson related to the war.
“Such meetings of authorities, public organizations, the State Emergency Service and the police expand opportunities for citizens to participate in shaping security policy at the local level, identifying risks, planning responses and developing a vision of a safe community,” notes Yurii Antoshchuk.
The first actions taken after the creation of the working group in Kherson were the publication of a booklet with a structured algorithm of actions for the civilian population and the contacts of emergency services to whom they should turn in case of shelling and destruction of housing, as well as the processing of identified risks for planning further actions.
Similar activities in Kherson are also supported by the Impulse Project implemented by the International Renaissance Foundation and the East Europe Foundation with funding from Norway (Norad) and Sweden (Sida).
