OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities Christophe Kamp hosted an event on effective consultation mechanisms with the support of the Chernivtsi Regional Military Administration and the State Service of Ukraine on Ethnic Policy and Freedom of Conscience (DESS) on 22 September 2026 during a visit to Chernivtsi region.
Kamp opened the event together with Deputy Head of Chernivtsi Regional Military Administration Oksana Leonidivna Sakrier and Head of the Department of Cooperation with Ethnic Communities at DESS Viktor Kovrei. Education officials from around 15 hromadas across the region discussed ways to increase the engagement of national minority communities in decisions that affect them.
"Consultation is an essential part of inclusive governance and something that every forward-looking administration seeks to foster," said Kamp. "When decisions are taken that significantly affect the lives of persons belonging to national minorities it is important that they have a meaningful opportunity to express their views, and that these views are genuinely taken into account."
Participants discussed different ways of organizing consultations and engaging communities, both formally and informally. They also had the opportunity to share their experiences about what has worked in their own hromadas and where they encounter challenges.
Education was at the centre of the discussions. As Kamp observed, schools play an important role in supporting the learning of minority languages and sharing of identities from generation to generation, while they also help ensure that children belonging to national minorities have a strong command of the state language and access to high-quality education, which improves their opportunities for the future.
"While international conventions, laws and recommendations provide principles and guidance, finding locally tailored solutions that work on the ground requires people at local authorities and schools, as well as parents and other representatives of minority communities, to talk to one another," said Kamp.
Chernivtsi region, with its rich linguistic, ethnic and religious diversity, provided a particularly relevant setting for the event. During his visit, Kamp also met with regional and local authorities, and representatives of national minority communities, to hear directly about their experiences and priorities, and to discuss how different communities live and work together in practice.
The High Commissioner's engagement in Ukraine is undertaken in the context of his conflict prevention mandate and is part of his office's longstanding work to support inclusive governance, effective participation of national minorities and social cohesion.
