Decentralization for Improved Democratic Education (DECIDE), Phase 2

Since the start of the large-scale war in 2022 a total of 3,373 educational institutions (10% nation-wide) have suffered damage, of which 385 have been completely destroyed. Despite considerable efforts of the Ukrainian Government  and international partners to secure access to education through equipment of bomb shelters, as of December 2024,  20% of schoolchildren were studying  in a hybrid mode while 12% entirely remotely. The combination of online learning, displacement, stress, and trauma is leading to severe learning losses for Ukrainian students.  

The recovery and modernization of the education sector is a key prerequisite for the post-war reconstruction, return of refugees and social cohesion, yet it  requires significant external support, especially in the regions that suffered from major war-related damages and destruction. 

Switzerland has provided a significant support to the New Ukrainian School Reform and is well positioned to support its third stage (to be launched in 2027) - the profession-oriented secondary school (10-12 grades). The reform will enable 9th grade students to choose between academic education or vocational training, and ensure a better connection between education and the labor market for the sustainable development of human capital and the economy. 

Local: local communities, in particular schoolchildren and their parents, local authorities, educators, civil society organizations, private businesses. 

Regional: Oblast State Administrations and Oblast Councils, regional centers for training of civil servants, in-service teachers training institutes. 

National: Ministry of Education and Science, Ministry for Development of Communities and Territories, all-Ukrainian local self-government associations. 

Outcome 1: National, regional and local authorities are empowered to effectively implement decentralized education governance reforms. 

Outcome 2: Schoolboys/girls and their parents benefit from inclusive democratic school governance and actively engage in recovery and development  of their communities. 

Erwartete Resultate:  

• Participatory policy development and strategic planning for decentralized education governance.  
• Data-driven solutions for effective and transparent education sector management. 
• Advisory support and capacity building for governmental and non-governmental actors engaged in education governance reforms. 
• Piloting of  inter-municipal cooperation models and school improvement projects in line with the reform priorities and local strategic documents. 
• Democratic school governance, citizenship education and career guidance for schoolchildren. 
• Youth projects for community recovery. 

Resultate von früheren Phasen:  

• 108 projects initiated by schoolchildren from 16 communities have been implemented to the benefit of over 31,000 local residents.  
• 83 communities engaged in cohesion-building activities reaching 30,600 schoolchildren, including 2,500 IDP children, and over 1,700 teachers. 
• 17,000 children from 20 communities got access to safe education through 27 recovery projects.  
• Over 80 strategic documents at the national, regional, and local levels were developed with DECIDE support and enforced. 
•  1,410 communities (98% of the total number) received expert advice and guidance on decentralised education governance reforms.  
• Over 500 local leaders and education managers from 300 communities improved their capacity in managing the education sector during the war time. 

• Coordination with EGAP in digitalization of the education governance 
• In pilot regions – a full-fledged cooperation with the Swiss-funded projects, in particular EGAP, UCORD, Act4Health; 
• Other development partners coordinating within the Sectoral Working Groups  on Education and on Decentralization and Regional recovery (EU, UNDP,  Sweden, Finland, Germany, Council of Europe).  

Phase 2 01.09.2025 - 31.08.2030   (Active)