The Cooperation Will Continue. A Delegation from Switzerland Paid a Working Visit to Vinnytsia

A two-day working visit to Vinnytsia by a delegation from the Swiss Confederation led by Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Switzerland to Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova Felix Baumann has come to an end. Long-term partners expressed a desire to get to know our community even better and learn about the challenges Vinnytsia faces in the midst of a full-scale invasion.

According to Vinnytsia Mayor Serhii Morhunov, the Vinnytsia city authorities, together with representatives of the Swiss Confederation, managed to implement not only the community’s transport reform. Switzerland has been actively involved in supporting Vinnytsia and our country since the beginning of the full-scale invasion.

“We are actively cooperating, particularly in the areas of energy efficiency, mobility and spatial development. Today, together with the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Switzerland to Ukraine Felix Baumann, we visited several facilities that are important for ensuring the community’s resilience in the face of constant enemy attacks. Even before the outbreak of the full-scale war, with co-financing from SECO, we managed to reconstruct several municipal district heating boiler houses. This significantly improved the situation in the city’s energy system,” he said.

In fact, the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Switzerland to Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova visited various facilities that now ensure the resilience of our community. This is the Innovation and Technology Centre ‘Krystal’, which is to be commissioned by the end of this year. When the centre becomes operational, it will increase the economic and technological capacity of Vinnytsia, as the centre will become a hub for the creative economy, where start-ups, scientists, entrepreneurs and students in various fields will be able to develop.

This is how the alley on Kosmonavtiv Avenue was transformed a few years ago, as it became more attractive not only for Vinnytsia residents but also for businesses.

Felix Baumann was also shown the solar power plant on the roof of the Transparent Office on Kosmonavtiv Avenue, which was installed in 2023 with the financial support of the Swiss-Ukrainian EGAP Programme of the East Europe Foundation. In case of power outages, the panels are able to provide electricity to the reception area of the Transparent Office. During the visit, they also viewed the boiler house, which was built and reconstructed under a Swiss project with the direct support of the partner state.

The foreign partners also visited one of the relocated enterprises from Kherson, which has been doing business in Vinnytsia for three years. The Ambassador also got acquainted with the work of Vinnytsiaoblvodokanal, where they discussed the problem of outdated water supply and sewage networks and water treatment from the Pivdennyi Buh. According to Dmytro Kistion, the head of Vinnytsiaoblvodokanal, the water supply stations were built about 70 years ago and therefore need major repairs. One of the challenges is to ensure uninterrupted water supply to Vinnytsia residents’ homes during power cuts.

“Today we have another challenge related to the regional water utility - the enterprise must operate stably and provide quality services to Vinnytsia residents. That is why we are looking for partners to implement projects that will improve the situation. The Swiss side has experience in such matters. During the war, the stability of critical infrastructure is not only about comfort, but also about the resilience of the community in wartime,” said Vinnytsia Mayor Serhii Morhunov.

According to the Ambassador of Switzerland to Ukraine Felix Baumann, Vinnytsia has established itself as a reliable partner in the implementation of joint projects:

“This cooperation has been quite successful over the past 15 years. That is, you can see that the variety of projects we are implementing is not only the supply of trams, but also those related to energy efficiency. I am confident that our cooperation will continue,” he stated.

The day before, Ambassador Baumann signed an additional agreement on public transport with Vinnytsia Mayor Serhii Morhunov. It provides for the transfer of 32 more Tram-2000 tramcars from Zurich to Vinnytsia, as well as technical expertise in various fields. The trams will be adapted for persons with reduced mobility. He also handed over a mini model of the Zurich Tram-2000 to the local Museum of Transport Models.