From 11 to 13 February, the Waste Management for Ukraine (WM4U) Programme held a series of strategic online events for representatives of beneficiary ministries, regional military administrations, and partner communities from the pilot regions of Ivano-Frankivsk, Vinnytsia, Poltava and Kharkiv regions. The focus was on presenting the roadmap for developing cluster-based waste management concepts and Local Waste Management Plans (LWMPs) as key instruments for the long-term transformation of Ukraine’s waste management system in line with EU standards.The main speaker at the events was Weine Wiqvist, Senior Adviser to the WM4U Programme, who presented the logic, sequencing and practical approaches to implementing a cluster model for municipal waste management in Ukraine.
From strategic frameworks to investment decisions
The presentations emphasised that the development of cluster concepts and LWMPs has both a strategic and a practical dimension. The objective of this approach is to prepare coherent products and planning documents that will guide communities and clusters in transforming waste management systems over a 10–20-year horizon, while also laying the groundwork for local investment planning.
Weine Wiqvist highlighted that it is the combination of strategic vision, economic feasibility and inter-municipal cooperation that enables a shift from fragmented solutions to resilient systems capable of attracting financing and scaling up.
Four pilot clusters – shared logic, different contexts
Within the WM4U Programme, the cluster-based approach is being implemented on the basis of Regional Waste Management Plans (RWMPs) in four regions:
- Ivano-Frankivsk region – Ivano-Frankivsk cluster;
- Kharkiv region – Lozova cluster;
- Vinnytsia region – Vinnytsia cluster;
- Poltava region – Kremenchuk cluster.
This approach makes it possible to account for regional specificities while maintaining a common methodological framework and enabling knowledge exchange between clusters.
Cluster concepts as a tool to avoid fragmentation
Special attention was given to the role of the cluster concept as a voluntary planning instrument that builds on RWMPs but is not directly regulated by legislation. As noted during the events, the cluster concept makes it possible to:
- avoid fragmented decision-making between communities;
- achieve economies of scale and improve investment efficiency;
- create conditions for regional economic development;
- strengthen the institutional capacity of communities;
- lay the foundations for the development of a circular economy.
According to Weine Wiqvist, the cluster-based approach represents a cost-effective, EU-aligned and sustainable pathway for modernising Ukraine’s waste management system and is an important element of post-war recovery.
From concepts to concrete community-level plans
During the sessions, the interlinkages between three key WM4U products were presented in detail:
- the Cluster Waste Management Concept;
- Local Waste Management Plans (LWMPs);
- the LWMP Template – a universal tool for all communities within a cluster.
It was emphasised that the preparation of these documents takes place in parallel and in stages, involving working groups, local and international experts, as well as representatives of regions and Swedish clusters.
Participants also focused on the current state of the reform: the approval of the National Waste Management Plan in December 2024, the updating of RWMPs in regions, and the requirement to finalise LWMPs within one year of their approval. In this context, cluster concepts are seen as a flexible instrument that allows communities to act proactively without waiting for all formal procedures to be completed.
A separate session demonstrated how the development of cluster concepts and LWMPs is aligned with other WM4U activities – including the development of inter-municipal cooperation, training and capacity building, bio-waste management projects, waste morphology studies, improvements to tariff systems, support for extended producer responsibility, and the preparation of the first “quick-win” investments.
The events held for ministries, regional administrations and partner communities marked an important step in aligning expectations and roles across all levels of governance. They established a shared understanding that cluster concepts and LWMPs are not merely formal documents, but practical tools for decision-making, accountability and the long-term development of communities.