Establishing Direct Partnerships between Ukrainian and Spanish Municipalities. Vinnytsia Residents Presented the Community's Potential at the International Event Global Forum for the Reconstruction of Ukraine – Economic and Humanitarian Partnership

On 25 February, the Global Forum for Ukraine's Recovery was held in Madrid, Spain, organised by the Rotary Club Madrid Intercontinental Passport in cooperation with the Association of Ukrainian Cities and other partners. The event was attended by representatives of Spanish municipalities, Ukrainian communities — in particular, a delegation from Vinnytsia — as well as international institutions and businesses. Delegates presented their projects and opportunities for developing international cooperation, supporting Ukraine's reconstruction, and establishing direct partnerships between communities in both countries.

During the forum, participants discussed the restoration of cities and critical infrastructure, energy and sustainable development, economic cooperation and investment, the development of the agricultural sector, the introduction of technology and innovation, as well as humanitarian and social projects.

During the official opening of the forum, Vinnytsia Mayor Serhii Morhunov spoke as the head of the Chamber of Large Cities of the Association of Ukrainian Cities. He emphasised the ability of Ukrainian communities to implement complex infrastructure solutions even in wartime and invited international partners to engage in systematic cooperation in the reconstruction and modernisation of cities.

'Despite the war, we are thinking in terms of reconstruction and development. Ukrainian communities have proven their managerial maturity: we know how to implement projects, work transparently, report, take responsibility and achieve measurable results. We are currently developing a new model for Vinnytsia – with energy autonomy, digital management and a modern environmental policy. We invite international partners to join us in designing solutions and implementing projects. Partnership with Ukrainian communities is an investment in solutions that work even in the most difficult conditions,' emphasised Serhii Morhunov.

During the discussion panel ‘Big Cities – Drivers of Reconstruction,’ which focused on systemic solutions, urban management, and attracting investment, Serhii Morhunov spoke about Vinnytsia's intentions to develop distributed generation and local autonomous energy systems, digital infrastructure, and environmental protection.

'We can no longer rely on a centralised energy supply system, so we are actively developing distributed generation: local solar stations, energy storage systems, microgrids for hospitals, schools and water utilities. This is not a temporary solution, but a new vision for the city's infrastructure, which provides stability for business, predictability for investors and safety for people,‘ said Serhii Morhunov. ’At the same time, we view the city as a digital system and a security system: we are creating DATA platforms and looking for new integrated solutions to strengthen the cyber protection of critical infrastructure. Ecology and resources are another area and another important system, which includes water, energy, waste, air quality, and local food. We are working on modernising waste processing and water treatment, developing air quality control, supporting local farming and climate adaptation, focusing on European approaches to resource management.'

The forum programme included business networking: meetings with representatives of local ROTARY clubs, diplomatic missions, international investors and associations, representatives of Spanish municipalities, regional and national deputies, as well as the Madrid Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

‘This platform provided an opportunity to talk to experts in areas that are of interest to cities for development. I met with representatives of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Entrepreneurship, the FIEM Foundation, Deloitte, the Spanish association SERCOBE, and others,’ said Serhii Morhunov.

During the event, the Vinnytsia delegation also presented infrastructure, social and investment projects to the European community, held individual B2B meetings, and established new contacts with international organisations, businesses and foundations in order to gain support in finding partners for the reconstruction and development of the community.