At the end of March, Kyiv hosted a large-scale Investment and Construction Congress that brought together more than 6,000 participants — developers, investors, government officials, and representatives of civil society. In a context of high uncertainty, one of the country’s key challenges is transforming the approach to territorial development.
Representatives of the Ukraine Rebuilding Alliance took part in the panel discussion titled “Are Investments Measured by a Development Strategy?” The discussion featured Yuriy Maslov, Chairman of the Board of the Ukraine Rebuilding Alliance, and Mark Kestelboim, Board Member of the Alliance and CEO of Well-Being ConTech, who moderated the session.
The panel speakers also included Oleksandr Selezniov, CEO of the development company Spatium Group; Oleksii Voloshyn, CEO of the management company Edem Family Group; Oleksandr Avdieiev, Head of the State Architectural and Construction Control Department of the Odesa City Council and a member of the City Council; and Petro Obukhov, Deputy of the Odesa City Council.
The discussion focused on a key question: how a territorial development strategy can evolve from a formal document into a real instrument for a city’s economic development and for attracting investment. Participants examined new models of urban development, the role of development projects in shaping economic activity, and the institutional constraints that currently limit the transformation of Ukrainian cities.
In his remarks, Yuriy Maslov, Chairman of the Board of the Ukraine Rebuilding Alliance, emphasized that a development strategy cannot be reduced to a formal document alone. In his view, a strategy is first and foremost a model of behavior and a shared vision of the city’s future.
According to Maslov, Odesa already has a significant number of strategic documents developed in line with modern standards. However, the key challenge lies in their practical implementation. A strategy only becomes effective when it serves as a shared point of reference for the city authorities, the business community, and society.
Maslov also drew attention to a deeper issue — the crisis of governance agreements and the responsibility of local elites for the long-term development of the city. He referred to the example of historic European cities, where urban elites established clear development rules and prevented decisions that could damage the urban environment or undermine the strategic interests of the community.
In his view, Odesa today requires a clearly articulated vision of the future — one that is understandable, practical, and responsive to the city’s real challenges. This concerns not only economic development but also fundamental issues of urban sustainability, including infrastructure conditions, environmental quality, water supply, and energy security.
“Strategy must be clear and simple in its meaning. If we cannot explain its essence to society, it means we do not fully understand it ourselves. Without a shared vision and open discussion of problems, any strategic documents risk remaining merely declarations,” Yuriy Maslov emphasized.
Participants in the discussion agreed that an effective urban development strategy emerges only when government, business, and the community reach a consensus on key development priorities. Such a model of cooperation is capable of ensuring the long-term economic resilience of cities and creating conditions for the systematic attraction of investment.
