Zhytomyr acquires the European Energy Award for the second time
photo: Zhytomyr City Council
The Zhytomyr City Council has demonstrated achievements in energy efficiency and received the European Energy Award (EEA) certificate at the level of 59.1%. The award ceremony took place during the plenary session of the Zhytomyr City Council on December 19.
Despite the numerous challenges caused by the martial law, the Zhytomyr community continues to plan and implement measures to reduce energy consumption, improve energy efficiency and reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Zhytomyr is also a successful example of improving the quality of governance for other municipalities.
Earlier, in accordance with the procedure, the Commission for the Certification of EEA Member Municipalities, consisting of representatives of the Ministry of Community and Territorial Development of Ukraine, the Swiss Embassy and the EEA National Office, reviewed the results of the independent audit and unanimously decided to issue the certificate to the municipality. The certificate was awarded during a plenary session of the Zhytomyr City Council on Thursday, December 19.
In his welcoming remarks, Deputy Head of Cooperation of the Embassy of Switzerland in Ukraine Silvan Hungerbühler said: “We started working with Zhytomyr more than 10 years ago. During this time, we have seen how the municipality and the city administration have proven to be reliable partners. The city is effectively and comprehensively implementing energy and climate policy, despite the difficult conditions of today. Let me congratulate you on this extraordinary achievement and wish you peace and prosperity.”
This is the second certification for the Zhytomyr municipality. Compared to 2019, the figure increased by 4.5%. Svyatoslav Pavliuk, Head of the EEA National Office in Ukraine, noted that Zhytomyr not only participates in the implementation of the EEA, but also takes a leadership position, inspiring other communities: “I have the opportunity to compare cities from the outside, not just from the inside. Zhytomyr is one of the three most dynamic cities, and the fact that you have increased 5 points over the past 4 years is actually very good progress. I thank the entire city team involved in both planning and implementation of development measures for their work and for setting an example for other municipalities that are implementing innovative solutions ifollowing your steps.”
“This encourages us not to stop there and move on. Thank you for your support, we will continue to work in this direction,” said Halyna Shymanska, Secretary of the City Council, in praise of the partners' achievements in Zhytomyr.
Background. The European Energy Award (EEA) is a quality management and certification system for municipalities that supports local authorities in implementing interdisciplinary planning approaches and effective energy and climate policy measures. Over the three decades of its existence, the EEA has proven to be an effective tool for achieving energy and climate goals in Europe and is gradually expanding its geography to countries such as Morocco, Tunisia, Chile and Colombia. The certification system covers almost 2000 municipalities, including 12 Ukrainian ones. Learn more about the EEA and follow the progress of certification in Ukraine on the web page.