During March 3-5, 2026, a three-day CAF ToT – Facilitator-Trainers Programme on “Facilitating the Self-Assessment Process Using the Common Assessment Framework (CAF) in Eastern Partnership Countries” took place in Maastricht, hosted by by the European CAF Resource Centre at the European Institute of Public Administration (EIPA)
The training was organised by GIZ and OECD/SIGMA Programme, with support of the Regional Project “Public Administration Reform in the Eastern Partnership Countries III”, implemented by GIZ on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).
In the event took part the representatives of the Ukrainian National CAF Resource Center – Hanna Tretiachenko, First Deputy Director of the Center for Adaptation of the Civil Service to the Standards of the European Union, and Anzhela Kukulia, Head of the Project Management Department.
This opportunity has enabled Ukraine to remain an active member of the European CAF community, exchange knowledge and experience with colleagues from other countries, and strengthen institutional capacity in the field of quality assurance and excellence in the Ukrainian public sector.
The event was opened by the Director-General of EIPA Marco Ongaro, Head of the European CAF Resource Centre at the EIPA Tihana Puzic, Senior Policy Advisor at OECD/SIGMA Nick Thijs, and Hrachik Yarmaloyan, Regional Component Manager in GIZ, Regional Project “Public Administration Reform in the Eastern Partnership Countries III”
The first day of the training was devoted to the state of play of CAF implementation in the Eastern Partnership countries, challenges and needs for improving this process.
Representatives of Ukraine presented their own experience and prospects for the development of the Ukrainian National CAF Resource Center.
The participants and European experts were particularly interested in the results of a survey conducted in 2025 on the level of awareness and effectiveness of the CAF model for assessing the quality management system and improving the performance of Ukrainian state authorities.
The event agenda also included a discussion of the updated CAF external feedback guidelines – CAF Excellence Recognition Guidelines.
The next two days of the training were devoted to facilitating key stages of CAF implementation in state authorities, discussing best practices in facilitating consensus-building and prioritization processes in Eastern Partnership countries within the framework of CAF self-assessment, practical facilitation techniques and tools, including AI, as well as the development of training programs.
Thanks to Ukraine’s active participation in the training, our experience is becoming a significant contribution to the development of European practices for improving public administration.
