Korosten Community Approves Updated Development Strategy Incorporating IBSER Expert Recommendations

On June 11, the Korosten City Council approved the updated Development Strategy of the Korosten Territorial Community until 2030. The final version of the Strategy incorporates a significant share of the recommendations provided by experts from the Institute for Budgetary and Socio-Economic Research (IBSER).
As part of its expert support, IBSER reviewed the draft Strategy and provided recommendations to strengthen its people- and child-centred approach, integrate the principles of accessibility, gender equality, and inclusion, and ensure alignment with Ukraine's national strategic planning framework. As a result, the adopted Strategy has become more coherent, results-oriented, and better focused on improving the well-being of community residents, particularly children and young people.
One of the key improvements is the shift from infrastructure development as an end in itself toward ensuring accessible, high-quality public services. The Strategy places greater emphasis on education, youth development, and social services. It supports the development of preschool, general secondary, vocational, and extracurricular education, promotes youth participation, and, for the first time, systematically integrates early childhood development and support for families with young children.
These changes create opportunities for expanding essential services, including early intervention, psychological support, speech therapy, and other services aimed at ensuring equal opportunities for all children regardless of where they live or their life circumstances.
The updated Strategy also lays the foundation for implementing child-responsive planning and budgeting. The next step will be to integrate the needs of children and young people into local target programmes, performance indicators, and budget programmes while using disaggregated data and needs assessments for different groups of children. This approach will help direct public resources toward addressing the real needs of children and families, improve service planning, and measure the impact of public spending through tangible improvements in children's quality of life.
The Strategy was developed in line with Ukraine's State Regional Development Strategy and relevant regional planning documents. During the drafting process, the community also held public consultations, allowing residents to submit proposals related to public safety and transport.
Another important improvement is the strengthened monitoring framework. Each project included in the Strategy is accompanied by clear performance and impact indicators, enabling the community to monitor implementation, assess results, and ensure the effective use of public resources.