Kirovohrad and Dnipropetrovsk oblast community leaders have participated in a workshop Managing Crises at a Community Level held at the facilities of the U-LEAD with Europe Programme Kirovohrad Oblast Regional Office.
Oleh Yaremenko, head of the U-LEAD with Europe Programme Kirovohrad Oblast Regional Office, stated that the idea of conducting such a training session had come in response to the request of the community, which had repeatedly been facing various crises, with the life and health of people being dependent on the decisions adopted by local self-government. It is for this reason that the ability to respond, make decisions, and justify one’s actions in the right manner is crucial.
Olena Tertyshna, head of the U-LEAD with Europe Programme Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Regional Office, was the activity moderator.
The expert team responsible for conducting the workshop was as follows:
- Maksym Tkach, head of the U-LEAD with Europe Programme Donetsk Oblast Regional Office;
- Anatolii Parkhomiuk, head of the U-LEAD with Europe Programme Volyn Oblast Regional Office;
- Maryna Lobova, head of the U-LEAD with Europe Programme Sumy Oblast Regional Office.
The participants learned what a crisis is, what stages of overcoming it exist, and what steps can be taken to establish communication in a crisis.
According to Maksym Tkach, community leaders often repeat one and the same phrase: "Our work means resolving crises on an ongoing basis."
"Frankly speaking, local self-government is tasked with building a resilient community-based management system that is capable of withstanding crises and countervailing their consequences, which requires having three components in place: a team, resources, and high-quality communication, both internal and external,"
stated the expert.
He also reminded that crises were not always bad as it was an emergency that gave rise to out-of-the-box solutions. That is why crises also create opportunities.
Anatolii Parkhomiuk clarified that any crisis could be divided into the following stages:
- Prevention – a crisis mitigation process: the steps taken to reduce the likelihood or effects of a crisis
- Preparation: the steps taken at the run-up to a crisis in order to make sure that response and recovery measures are effective
- Response: the steps taken to control and minimize the impact of a crisis
- Recovery: the steps taken to reduce the amount of time and overcome the consequences of a crisis
Parkhomiuk believes that while combating a crisis, it is important to keep stakeholders, especially non-governmental organizations, in mind, engaging them at every stage of preparation and response.
"Training is an important element of getting prepared for crisis,"
emphasized the expert. He went on to say that people and their trust were the authorities’ major stakeholders.
The way people should be talked to in a crisis is what Maryna Lobova told about. First of all, it is necessary not to keep silent in order to prevent rumors and panic, and secondly, it is necessary to explain to people what the authorities are doing to solve the problem.
"It is no secret that residents of any community put the blame for any crisis or an emergency on local self-government, above all the head of the community. When people get into a dangerous situation, they seek to answer the following questions: Are my close ones and I safe? What should be done to keep my family and me safe? What are the authorities doing to keep my family and me safe? Maintaining the right and timely communication during a crisis is of paramount importance,"
said the expert.
During the practical exercise, the participants worked in teams to solve thematic cases, and when it was over, a presentation and discussion of decisions took place.
"The workshop resulted in me getting useful and actionable recommendations. I understood how to develop communication in a crisis,"
said Yevhen Kulyk, deputy head of the Bobrynets Community.
"The main conclusion is that maintaining communication with residents is of top priority. The authorities and the community should counter a crisis hand in hand. And I am very thankful for the algorithm of taking action in a crisis,"
said Alla Zhovtylo, deputy head of the Mala Vyska Community.