The monitoring results were presented during a roundtable, in which representatives of political forces, public organizations, and the media took part. The results of the work of the Center for Political Analysis and Electoral Consulting were presented by Mykhailo Shelep, head of the expert group. He drew attention to the clear requirements regarding the presentation of information and the established requirements regarding the volume of materials. All information was summarized and systematized into four sections: "Government and Politics," "Civil Society," "Mass Media," and "Business Climate."
It is worth noting that the study aroused considerable interest among the public, since such an analysis of the situation in the oblast was conducted for the first time. And now about the content of the sections.
In the section "Government and Politics," the real balance of power between the oblast state administration and the oblast council, the Lutsk city mayor and the council was presented, and individuals who can be classified as representatives of the political elite were identified. Voicing the position on relations in the "Center (Kyiv) – region" dimension, Mykhailo Shelep noted that despite the fact that the "orange coloring" of the region may not suit the Government and may leave its mark on the Center's attitude toward the region, the oblast authorities are coping with the fulfillment of the tasks assigned to them and were able to achieve positive trends in the socio-economic development of the region. The absence of pressure from the government on local authorities may be due to the lesser importance of the region's role in the context of the entire country, believe experts of the Center for Political Analysis and Electoral Consulting.
In the section "Civil Society," experts listed the most high-profile initiatives and events involving NGOs and drew attention to the publicity and openness of the public sector of Volyn.
The peculiarities of the media space of Volyn are presented in the third section of the monitoring, in which, in addition to influence and circulation, the results of a study of the popularity of print media and local channels among residents of the region, conducted by the Agency for Social Analysis "Socium XXI" in 2006, are provided.
The "Business Climate" of the oblast was determined by the following criteria: the presence of business structures, the participation of foreign capital, the level of development of private initiative, instances of government interference in business operations (political engagement), and the presence of cases of raiding.
The center's experts identified the main trends in the economic sector. As Mykhailo Shelep noted, the economy of Volyn Oblast is developing dynamically, with the greatest progress observed in machine building, construction, and the food industry. In 2006, the volume of foreign investment attracted to the economy of Volyn increased 15.1 times compared to 2005. Conflicts over the redistribution of property also occurred in the oblast, but their scale compared to other regions is insignificant. It is worth noting that in 2006, enterprises of the oblast received a positive financial result – UAH 335.2 million in profit. The share of enterprises that operated profitably was 66.4 percent. The section lists all the leading enterprises of Volyn Oblast, some of which successfully operate outside the oblast center.
As noted by the project manager, chairman of the Board of the Laboratory of Legislative Initiatives, Ihor Kohut, the project "Ukraine: A Year After the Elections. Monitoring of Regions" is being carried out in 10 regions: Volyn, Lviv, Vinnytsia, Odesa, Donetsk, Sumy, Chernihiv, Cherkasy, Kharkiv, and Kherson oblasts of Ukraine. Its main goal is to analyze the dynamics and trends of regional development in order to better understand the processes taking place in the country at the regional level and their impact on the national level. After presentations of analytical materials in all the above-mentioned regions, a presentation of the nationwide report will take place in Kyiv, which will be published on the Laboratory's website and printed as a brochure for distribution among representatives of the public and government bodies.
To obtain the results of the regional monitoring "Volyn Oblast: A Year After the Elections," please contact the Center for Political Analysis and Electoral Consulting by phone (0332) 788289 or e-mail: centre_paec@yahoo.com.