On 29 October 2026, the first General Assembly of the international ALLONS-EU programme took place, marking the launch of an initiative aimed at strengthening local democracy, supporting Ukrainian communities, and fostering cooperation between Ukraine and the European Union. The event brought together representatives of ALDA, Ukrainian and European partner organisations, Local Democracy Agencies (LDAs), and other members of the consortium.
Over the next three years, the programme will focus on expanding the network of Local Democracy Agencies, supporting 21 local projects, and engaging Ukrainian and European municipalities in joint initiatives.
The project is co-funded by the French Development Agency (Agence Française de Développement, AFD) and involves cooperation with organisations and institutions working to strengthen local democracy and support municipalities in Ukraine.
The General assembly included the broad community of ALDA in Europe and Ukraine.
The programme is led by ALDA – the European Association for Local Democracy – and will be implemented in partnership with Leader France, the Association of Ukrainian Civic Initiatives (AUCI), and Local Democracy Agencies, with the involvement of Ukrainian and European partners.
Opening the General Assembly, ALDA President Nataša Vučković emphasised that the programme’s launch was the result of many years of cooperation with Ukrainian partners.
“We believe that this project will have a significant impact. European partners with extensive experience in this field are joining efforts to cooperate with Ukrainian local authorities. Through this exchange, Ukraine will be able to benefit from European best practices and expertise,” said Nataša Vučković.
The ALDA President stressed that one of the organisation’s priorities is to promote effective models of local governance and strengthen ties between Ukrainian communities and European partners.The participants were welcomed by Sébastien Surun, Minister-Counsellor at the Embassy of France in Ukraine. He emphasised the important role of local communities in strengthening Ukraine’s resilience and supporting its recovery. “French and European local authorities have had a massive response to the humanitarian needs of Ukraine. These local authorities have a lot to bring to build the capacity of their peers,” noted Sébastien Surun.
During the General Assembly, Axelle Noss, a representative of the French Development Agency (AFD) in Ukraine, highlighted the importance of working directly with Ukrainian cities and communities.
“Our task is to cooperate with Ukrainian cities and communities at the local level, including by supporting the reconstruction of infrastructure in Ukraine. We also aim to develop long-term partnerships that will contribute to social, environmental, and economic transformation in Ukraine,” said Axelle Nos.
One of the programme’s key priorities will be to develop a network of ten Local Democracy Agencies (LDAs), which serve as platforms for cooperation between local authorities, civil society, and European partners.
During the first General Assembly, partners were introduced to the programme’s governance structure, planned activities, and expected results.
ALDA Secretary General Antonella Valmorbida presented the programme and its organisational framework. According to Valmorbida, ALLONS-EU aims to strengthen the role of local authorities and civil society in these processes, encourage citizen participation in decision-making, and expand cooperation with European partners.
The programme plans to engage more than 80 local authorities from European countries and 80 local and regional authorities from Ukraine. This will create opportunities for exchanging experience, building partnerships, and jointly implementing community-level projects.
ALLONS-EU will run for 36 months, providing comprehensive support to local authorities and civil society organisations. It will target 10 Local Democracy Agencies in 9 regions of Ukraine, 60 local authorities involved and 20 associations in Ukraine and 80 local partners from Europe. It will have 46 grants for organisations for the implementation of the capacity building and will have more than 4500 direct beneficiaries on capacity building and small local projects for decentralized cooperaiton, projects development capacities, rural development and civic dialogue.it unifies under one single umbrella three methodologies for local empowerment like Local Democracy Agencies, the civic dialogues and the Leader approach
An important component of the programme will be the introduction of the LEADER approach, which promotes rural development through the active participation of local residents, civil society organisations, businesses, and public authorities.
The expansion of the Local Democracy Agency network, capacity-building programmes, and support for local initiatives are expected to help Ukrainian communities respond more effectively to the challenges of war, mobilise resources, and adopt European approachesto local governance.
The Civic Dialogues will allow to develop deliberation and consultation at the local level in homoadas and support them in identifying problems and opportunities and they will fund possible projects established together.
At the end of the event, all participants had the opportunity to vote for the ALLONS-EU programme logo. The selected design symbolises the partnership between Ukraine and Europe, incorporating elements that represent shared democratic values and cooperation.