New Administrative and Territorial Division of Ukraine – New Challenge for National Interest

Abstract

In 2020, Ukraine underwent a radical administrative reform. As a result, the number of grassroots administrative units decreased sharply, and some of them ceased to exist. At the same time, old problems and shortcomings of public administration at the local level have not been resolved. The legal status and implementation of this reform in the temporarily occupied territories with special administrative status remains unclear. Instead of solving old problems, the new reform added new ones. Therefore, in the coming years we should expect new changes and adaptation of public administration at the local level. Particularly acute is the issue of delimitation of new raions (districts). An important issue is the transfer of powers from the old to the new local governments. A number of districts have a rather poor configuration and location of the administrative centre. This only complicates management at the local level.