Dolyna Territorial Community

Ivano-Frankivsk

Population:

The Dolyna territorial community is located in the Kalush district, Ivano-Frankivsk region.

Total area: 358.80 km²
Population: 48,844
Men: 17,857
Women: 20,822
Children: 9,769
Internally displaced persons: 4,964

The community includes 1 town and 21 rural population centers and has its administrative center in the town of Dolyna

History

According to legend, the founding of the town of Dolyna took place in 979 and is associated with the discovery of large salt deposits on the territory of the community. According to official data, the first mention of Dolyna dates back to 1403 and is associated with the names of the Polish-Lithuanian ruler Władysław II Jagiełło and his younger brother Švitrigaila.

An important date is 1418, when the town was granted Magdeburg rights.

The saltworks “Salina” used to be Dolyna’s jewel. Now it is Ukraine’s unique monument of industrial architecture of the 19th and early 20th centuries. For thousands of years, the salt of Dolyna was the local white gold – the main source of income for the population.

The spiritual heritage of the Dolyna community is also rich.

Roman Catholic Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary (1835) Source

Greek Catholic Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (1896-1904), consecrated by Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytskyi/ Source

Dolyna was a multicultural town, inhabited by representatives of different nations, who left their mark on the history and architecture of the town. One of these monuments is the building of the former synagogue.

Synagogue (now a house of prayer) Source

The community houses the Hoshiv Monastery of the Basilian Fathers in the village of Hoshiv, which is one of western Ukraine’s greatest religious, historical and architectural shrines.

Important historical and cultural monuments of the community include the local history museum “Boikivshchyna”, founded in 1997 thanks to the famous Ukrainian-American patrons Tetiana and Omelian (a native of Dolyna) Antonovychs.

Among the prominent natives of Dolyna is also the cardinal of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church – Myroslav Ivan Liubachivskyi.

Monument to Cardinal of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church Myroslav Ivan Liubachivskyi in Dolyna Source

Natural monuments are also present on the territory of the Dolyna community, namely the Kolybach stone in the village of Hrabiv, which is one of the points on the tourist route.

Also, there are two historical monuments in the community, dated to the end of the 3rd – the turn of the 2nd-1st millennia BC. This is a find of an axe in the village of Tiapche and a stone hammer-axe from Velyka Turia. The axe is kept in the Dziedushytsky Museum, and the hammer is stored in the Liubomirsky Museum in Lviv.

Economy and Welfare

The main branch of the community’s economy is the oil and gas industry (over 90% of industrial production), represented by the Dolyna Gas Processing Plant and other enterprises.

The Dolyna community has the potential for the production of environmentally friendly agricultural products and the processing of the gifts of nature of the Carpathian region. Today, significant areas of about 100 hectares are used for the cultivation of blueberries.

Also, laboratory production of seedlings of blueberries, thornless blackberries and fruit tree rootstocks has been established. There are certain projects for the cultivation and processing of medicinal raw materials. Also, a promising area of development is the processing of dairy products (craft cheeses).

There are also light industry enterprises operating in the community, specializing in workwear manufacturing, woodworking and construction. Local small entrepreneurs mainly focus on the trade and services sector.

The community is constructing new apartment buildings, commercial and office premises, etc.

In total, about 900 legal entities operate in the community

There are 24 general secondary education institutions, 15 preschool institutions, a children’s and youth sports school, a children’s school of aesthetic education and a children’s art school in the Dolyna urban territorial community.

Dolyna Children's and Youth Sports School Source

An extensive network of healthcare facilities operates in the community which includes 8 outpatient clinics, 13 temporary medical stations, the Primary Health Care Center, and the Dolyna Multidisciplinary Hospital.

As part of the international project “Cooperation to Improve Medical Care in Dolyna and Baia Sprie” in 2021–2023, outpatient clinic No. 1 was modernized, new medical services were introduced, and an exchange of experience between medical professionals was organized.

Community and War

Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the Dolyna community has been performing logistics functions. They actively assist internally displaced persons, residents of frontline areas, and military personnel, and also continue their activities as a local government body to support the community’s vital activities.

During the entire period of the military invasion, the community sheltered about 5,000 internally displaced persons from war-torn territories. The children’s hospital temporarily housed children from the Zhytomyr orphanage fleeing from the enemy invasion.

A humanitarian hub has been created on the basis of the Dolyna Town Council. Aid from international partners, organizations, and local residents is brought there. It is then redirected to military personnel from the community in the combat zone, residents of frontline areas, and internally displaced persons.

Volunteering is actively carried out in the Dolyna community, likewise in all of Ukraine. During this time, many volunteer centers have been formed.

Throughout the war, volunteers, local businesses, and residents have been actively involved in raising funds to support the army. Schools often organize charity fairs and events.

Charity fair at Dolyna Lyceum No. 6 “European”/ Source

The Dolyna Town Council also allocates funds, if possible, to assist military units in which community residents serve.

Procurement of 150 FPV drones and 10 Mavics for the military Source

Community People

The community is led by the mayor, Ivan Dyriv.

The Dolyna community is a signatory to the European Covenant of Mayors initiative, within the framework of which they developed and approved the Community’s Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plan until 2030.

The community leadership is actively working to achieve the goals set in this strategic document and participates in events dedicated to climate change adaptation and energy as a participant in the Covenant of Mayors.

Mayor's participation in the event on climate change adaptation within the framework of the Covenant of Mayors Source

The Dolyna community has successful experience in implementing energy efficiency projects and is willing to share it with representatives of other municipalities to ensure the sustainability of the region.

With the initiative and support of community leadership, they have implemented a large number of international technical assistance projects, regional, national, and local programs.

Opening of a modernized outpatient clinic within the framework of the international project "Cooperation to Improve Medical Care in Dolyna and Baia Sprie"

With the assistance of the community leadership, another demonstration project of the Dolyna Town Council was implemented – the Entrepreneurship Support Center, the purpose of which is to promote business development and establish cooperation between businesses and the authorities to ensure a comfortable environment for future entrepreneurs in the community.

Official opening of the Entrepreneurship Support Center Source

Development Strategy

The community has approved the Strategy of the Dolyna Subregion for the period until 2027, which has defined the following strategic areas:

stimulating economic activity in rural areas;
an area with a developed tourist and health complex and a high level of tourist and health services;
development of engineering infrastructure and public spaces;
ensuring high quality social public services;
increasing energy efficiency.

Also in the process of adoption is the Development Strategy of the Dolyna Territorial Community until 2027, which has defined the following strategic areas:

increasing energy efficiency and adapting to climate change;
infrastructure development;
effective social protection.

In addition, the community is working on implementing the Action Plan for Sustainable Energy Development and Climate of the Dolyna Territorial Community until 2030.

In 2017, Dolyna received the Smart Cities Ukraine 2017 Award at the International Summit of Mayors in the category: “Cleantech solutions and energy efficiency”. The town is also the only one in Ukraine to have received a European certificate for energy efficiency management.

By 2021, the Dolyna had fulfilled all the requirements of the Covenant of Mayors and reduced harmful emissions into the atmosphere by 21%. Therefore, participation in the Covenant was extended until 2030.

Over the past 10 years, all public sector institutions in the town of Dolyna have been insulated, more than 30% of residential buildings, which is the highest indicator in Ukraine, have modernized street lighting, abandoned centralized heating, and more than 60% of large boiler houses have been converted to alternative fuels.

List of Sources

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