During a working visit to Switzerland aimed at establishing interregional sectoral dialogue between Swiss municipalities and Transcarpathian communities, the director of the Charitable Organization "Charity Fund "Medical Aid Committee in Zakarpattya" Nataliya Kabatsiy met with representatives of local authorities from the cantons of Aargau, Bern, and Basel.

In particular, together with Michael Rössler, a member of the European Civic Forum, a meeting was held with the mayors of Bremgarten, Muri-Gümligen, Kirchlindach, and later with Daniel Gmür, a lawyer, member of the Grand Council of Basel and member of the Commission on Construction and Spatial Planning. 

The main focus was on areas of common interest that could be developed into cross-sectoral cooperation between communities in the two countries in the future. Nataliya Kabatsiy presented Swiss officials with a detailed report on Zakarpattya, highlighting the region’s similarities to a number of Swiss cantons – located on the European border, attractive for tourism, with rich nature, mountainous terrain, etc. 

"Our organization has long been engaged with Swiss civil society, and we consider cooperation between communities to be a logical component of our future priorities, especially given that intergovernmental relations between Ukraine and Switzerland are gradually deepening. We are currently seeing initiatives from the Swiss side to participate in supporting the affected civilian population, post-war reconstruction of the country, and so on. We are convinced of the success of interregional cooperation, especially in terms of sharing management experience, restarting domestic services for vulnerable groups, and bringing in high-quality innovations for small businesses, agriculture, and vocational education, etc. Switzerland has expertise in these areas, while Ukraine has institutions, proactive communities, and an active civil society that is ready to learn, change, and take responsibility for implementing effective practices in communities", noted Nataliya Kabatsiy.

According to mayor Jan Köbeli of Muri-Gümligen, he has already been to Ukraine and, having visited Lviv, Poltava, and Kharkiv, came to the conclusion that it is a developed country with a clear vision for development, modern services, and amenities, all of which are important to preserve despite the war. Together with his colleagues, he announced his intention to begin the necessary consultations in the communities to choose the optimal format for future cooperation. 

"We are ready to cooperate at any level. To begin with, we could intensify dialogue with our colleagues from local government. This dialogue will not be about promises, but about the experience that both sides have and which could be useful to borrow. It is also important for us to talk directly with active Ukrainian society, to learn about the situation in the country firsthand, rather than from the news. We are ready to promote cooperation between sectoral institutions in our regions, in particular between educational institutions, social institutions, the non-governmental sector, and the business community... We have been and remain in solidarity with Ukraine. I believe that our meeting is a good first step towards further cooperation", Daniel Gmür emphasized during the meeting.

The director of CAMZ invited Swiss officials to visit Zakarpattya, learn about public initiatives in the region, meet with Ukrainian colleagues, and discuss the possibility of signing a memorandum of cooperation, which will become a starting point for the implementation of joint projects and programs.