The policy brief is a practical tool for local authorities, aimed at transforming production-sharing agreements (PSAs) from a mechanism that operates without the involvement of local communities into a genuine partnership between the state, the business sector and communities for the equitable use of Ukraine’s natural resources.

The document was prepared based on the findings of the analytical report “Public Participation in the Conclusion and Monitoring of Production Sharing Agreements (PSAs)”. The report includes a legal analysis of PSA legislation, a review of the implementation practices of 13 concluded agreements, 14 information requests submitted to 211 territorial communities, and 26 in-depth interviews with representatives of local self-government bodies in Sumy, Poltava, Lviv, and Ivano-Frankivsk oblasts.

The study revealed a critical gap between the communities’ rights to participate in PSA processes and the actual reality on the ground, where the vast majority of local government representatives were hearing about production-sharing agreements for the first time, even in communities with many years’ experience of extractive activities within their territories.

The purpose of this document is to provide local self-government bodies with a clear and practical tool that explains:

• what PSAs are and why they are directly relevant to community development;
• what rights of communities are formally guaranteed by law;
• why these rights are largely not implemented in practice;
• what actions a community can and should take, even in the absence of an active position from the state or investor.

The document contains a practical guide and is intended for use by heads of territorial communities, local council members, and local self-government specialists responsible for economic development, land management, and communal property. The Policy Brief will be useful both for communities where extractive activities under PSAs are already taking place and for those that may encounter these processes in the future, given the active launch of new tenders for the conclusion of agreements and the conversion of existing special permits into the PSA format.

The study was prepared by NGO “NOVA Energiya” with the support of the Askold and Dir Foundation, administered by ISAR Ednannia, within the framework of the project “Strong Civil Society of Ukraine — A Driver of Reforms and Democracy”, funded by Norway and Sweden.

The content of this study is the sole responsibility of NGO “NOVA Energiya” and does not necessarily reflect the views of the Governments of Norway, Sweden, or ISAR Ednannia.