A delegation of 13 mayors from Ukraine wrap up its two day visit to Chatham-Kent today.
The group spent part of the visit meeting with Mayor Canniff and municipal officials talking about amalgamation, something they’re going through now.
Oleksander Korinnyi is the mayor of Novoukrainska and says there’s a lot to learn.
“A lot of things were said about the issues and difficulties which you met here in Chatham-Kent during the amalgamation, I hope we will be able to use this useful information to avoid those mistakes in our communities,” Korinnyi says.
Local officials, including Mayor Darrin Canniff and a number of councillors, met with the Ukrainian delegation in Council Chambers Thursday morning, answering questions about municipal governance and the amalgamation process.
“A lot of questions have been asked of us,” Canniff says “One of the differences I’ve already noted is the mayor over there is also the administrator,” lumping the mayoral duties in with that of the CAO.
Canniff says agriculture is a shared bond the Ukrainian communities have with Chatham-Kent.
The trip is being funded by the federal government. A second delegation is in Prince Edward County in eastern Ontario this week.