The study visit of the Chortkiv city municipality, Ternopil region, to the city of Béziers (France) took place on July 15-18, 2024. It was organized by the Association of Ukrainian Cities.

The delegation of the Association of Ukrainian Cities included:

Yaroslav Dzyndra, Secretary of Chortkiv City Council,

Volodymyr Batyrov, Chief Engineer, public utility company "Chortkiv Production Department of Water Supply and Sewerage", Chortkiv City Council,

Nataliia Husarevych, Expert on the Support of Municipalities in Preparing Joint Projects within established international partnerships, the Association of Ukrainian Cities.

Robert Ménard, Mayor of Béziers, facilitated the donation of a video endoscope to the Chortkiv municipality by "Suez Eau France". This advanced equipment is used for visual inspection of the internal surfaces of pipelines.

Volodymyr Batyrov noted that for employees of the Chortkiv utility company, this video endoscope will be a reliable assistant during both routine inspections of sewer pipes and in cases of emergency damage or blockages of the system.  Thanks to this equipment, it will be possible to identify existing problems at early stages, which will help avoid serious accidents and complex repair work, save the municipality's funds, and use working time more efficiently.

Members of the Ukrainian delegation presented a project to their French colleagues aimed at modernizing the water supply infrastructure, implementing modern water resource management technologies, reducing water losses in the city’s water supply system, and improving the quality of drinking water for the residents of Chortkiv municipality.

The French side agreed to study the presented project in detail and provide technical and advisory assistance for its implementation.

During the visit, the Ukrainian delegation got acquainted with the specifics of water supply and sewerage systems of Béziers, as well as with practical aspects of resolving current repairs and emergency situations using modern technologies and equipment. For the entire agglomeration, these services are provided under contract by the private company "Suez Eau France," whose engineers and technical staff demonstrated some practical cases to the Ukrainian delegation. They showed how to manage current and emergency repairs of water supply and sewerage systems.

The representatives of the Chortkiv city municipality received practical lessons on the use of the video endoscope, as well as advice on analyzing the obtained data and preparing documentation for planning current repairs of water supply and sewerage systems.

In addition, Ukrainian delegation got acquainted with the modern equipment used by the Béziers municipality for territory cleaning.

 As part of the visit, a meeting was held with representatives of the Béziers municipality, namely:

Elisabeth Pissarro, First Deputy Mayor of Béziers for Culture and Historical Heritage,

Frederic Brossard, Deputy Director of the Department of Public Services in Beziers.

Representatives of the two municipalities specifically discussed the organization of school meals. Children from the Chortkiv city municipality, who were in the summer camp at the Jean Mermoz Vocational High School in Béziers at the same time, highly appreciated the quality of the food.

Summing up the visit, Yaroslav Dzyndra noted that the French municipality of Béziers has become a reliable partner and friend for the Chortkiv municipality. He thanked the people of France for their solidarity in the fight against Russian aggression, and the municipality of Béziers for their ongoing support and for organizing recreational activities for the children of soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The new knowledge gained during the visit will be actively implemented in Chortkiv.

"We sincerely thank the Association of Ukrainian Cities for their help in establishing a partnership that will contribute to the improvement of people's living conditions. The continued collaboration between the French and Ukrainian municipalities will be the next step in friendly international cooperation to enhance the lives of residents," Yaroslav Dzyndra noted.

Based on the results of the meeting, a joint action plan was developed:

- further study of the best practices of implementation of projects in the field of municipal economy and local self-government based on the experience of the city of Beziers;

- planning joint reconstruction work to improve the quality of life of the Chortkiv municipality;

- strengthening of partnership between Ukrainian and French local governments based on shared experience.

The exchange of experience between Ukrainian and French municipalities, as well as the development of partnership relations, is systematic: 

On June 04, 2024, a bilateral online meeting took place between representatives of the Chortkiv city municipality, Ternopil region, and the municipality of Béziers (France).

The visit was organized by the Association of Ukrainian Cities within the framework of the "Promoting comprehensive development of municipalities through analytics, dialogue and international cooperation" Project, which is implemented with the support of the Programme "ULEAD with Europe".

To read the Ukrainian version of the article, please click the link.