Ukraine: Pyriatyn community strengthens local economy and cohesion with EU support
The Delegation of the European Union to Ukraine recently visited the Pyriatyn community, in Poltava oblast, to mark the completion of a three-year project under the EU’s ‘Mayors for Economic Growth’ (M4EG) initiative. During the visit, the EU delegation met with local government representatives, including Deputy Head Mykhailo Melnuchenko, educators and entrepreneurs, and visited key facilities supported by the EU.
The project, which ran from 2022 to 2025, aimed to strengthen the local economy, support small-scale agricultural production, create jobs, foster youth entrepreneurship, and enhance the community’s social cohesion.
With support from the EU, the community created new jobs by opening a meat processing workshop, modernising a bakery, and introducing new technologies in livestock farming, processing, and logistics. They established modern coworking spaces in six school locations, which now serve as platforms for entrepreneurial education, practical skills development, and youth-led initiatives. More than 11,000 children and young people have taken part in a range of educational and production activities.
The Pyriatyn community also expanded the area for growing berries, vegetables, and fruit trees to 56 hectares, with irrigation systems now covering over 15% of the land. They introduced a shared grain storage service using polymer sleeves, enabling the preservation of over 10,000 tonnes of produce.
The community also built 67 greenhouses and launched a small-scale mechanisation service that now supports more than 300 households annually. The community actively supports internally displaced persons (IDPs), providing shelter for over 10,000 people — of whom 4,000 have chosen to settle permanently.
As part of the Ukraine Facility, the EU supported the New Ukrainian School reform initiative in Pyriatyn. This funding has enhanced digital learning in six rural schools through the provision of laptops, while seven schools each received interactive touchscreen smartboard kits to foster engaging and modern education. Berezovorudska School now hosts a photo-video studio to inspire student creativity, and the town lyceum has been upgraded with a digital physics lab and new equipment for chemistry and biology, creating a comprehensive, digital-first learning environment.
During the visit, EU representatives toured culinary and sewing coworking spaces, as well as the meat processing and biomass briquettes production facility.
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