The Western NIS Enterprise Fund (WNISEF), supported by the Office of the Prime Minister of Ukraine, is organizing an international event on October 9, 2018, where Ukrainian mayors and their foreign colleagues will share best urban development practices.
For the third year in a row, the Summit will bring together mayors from all across Ukraine, their foreign counterparts, local government leaders and the innovative business community to find solutions to key problems facing cities. The topic of this year’s Summit is “Cooperation for economic growth,” with a specific focus on partnering with business.
The Summit is being organized by WNISEF with the support of Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman.
“Ukraine can and should become an economic stronghouse,” says PM Groysman. “To get there, we need to understand that we all share responsibility for the future of our country. That’s why the forum includes discussion of cooperation and innovative approaches that can work at the local level.”
The format of this event will include presentations of success stories involving public-private partnerships in cities of Europe and the US, as well as the achievements of Ukrainian cities.
For the first time, this year’s Summit introduces fast lane business networking for mayors to get to know the CEOs of leading companies. The event is being held in partnership with the Energy-Efficient Cities of Ukraine Association and the Association of Small Cities of Ukraine.
“This event is primarily for mayors as city managers,” says IMS founder Iryna Ozymok. “Our unique format allows them to put into practice what they learn at the Summit. At the same time, the mayor is not the only person responsible for the development of a city. After all, the community is an additional human resource to generate change in a city. That’s why we started a campaign called ‘What idea can change your city?’ to find out what new ideas mayors and urban residents have about their cities. We plan to help the best of these to be put into action.”
To suggest such an idea, visit the International Mayors Summit website at http://internationalmayorssummit.com or check the hashtag #мояідеямоємісто on social networks starting from September 10. There you will find complete details about this competition.
This year’s Summit exclusive partner is VISA. Partners of the event – Datagroup, the Mercedes-Benz representative office in Ukraine, Kerameya, Danfoss Ukraine, Interproject GmbH, the Empire of Water, iC Consulenten Ukraine, the Union of Ukrainian Entrepreneurs, Bigmedia, GIZ, PLEDGG, Energy Efficient Cities of Ukraine Association and Association of Small Cities of Ukraine. Information partner of the event – American Chamber of Commerce.
WNISEF is a $150 million regional fund, a pioneer in Ukraine and Moldova, with more than two decades of successful experience in investing in SMEs. WNISEF was founded by the US government. Since its inception, WNISEF’s cumulative investments total over $172 million and making it possible to unlock an $1.5 billion for companies in Ukraine and Moldova. Since 2015, WNISEF has launched a $35 million legacy program focused on export promotion, local economic development, impact investing and economic leadership. http://wnisef.org
