On November 13, 2024, as part of the Data+ communication platform, an online discussion “Addressing the Challenges of Verification and Publication of the Unified State Register of Addresses (USRA)” was held. The event was organized by the Better Regulation Delivery Office (BRDO) in cooperation with the Ministry for Communities and Territories Development of Ukraine, and the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, and made possible by the Digital Transformation Activity with support from USAID and UK Dev. The event gathered around 140 participants, including representatives of local councils, government institutions, postal services, educational institutions, civic activists, and experts in the field of open data.
The Unified State Register of Addresses (USRA) is being developed as a single database of all addresses in Ukraine, containing unique identifiers for each object of administrative-territorial structure, street, building, and premise. This solution will facilitate interoperability between electronic systems (both public and private), efficient tax administration and property accounting, counteraction to real estate fraud, as well as improve the work of emergency services, urban development planning, and the provision of convenient administrative services to citizens.
During the implementation of the USRA project, two pilot projects were conducted, involving more than 150 communities. A training course for specialists was developed, and to date, more than 1,700 community specialists have completed training and started work in USRA. Competence Centers have been established in every region to support and advise local authorities. Moreover, Deputy Governors for Digitalization (CDTOs) in all regions of Ukraine have been involved in the project, ensuring effective coordination.
Anatolii Komirnyi, Deputy Minister for Communities and Territories Development of Ukraine – Chief Digital Transformation Officer, emphasized the importance of the USRA project in solving address-related issues in every settlement. He noted that numerous address databases exist without synchronization, which impacts the work of government agencies, emergency services, businesses, and the daily lives of Ukrainians. Therefore, it is essential to create a unified system of verified addresses that all stakeholders can use. Over the past three months, more than 100,000 streets have been verified within the register.
Yanina Liubyva, Open Data Expert at the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, noted that publishing USRA as open data would enhance the efficiency of software products and services, allowing the integration of the register into technical solutions. Promoting the opening and use of socially significant datasets is a priority for the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine. The Ministry will support the publication of USRA as open data and its implementation in digital services.
Nadiya Konashchuk, Head of the Open Data Direction for the “Support for Digital Transformation” (DTA) project, added that two key areas should be highlighted within the USRA project: first, populating the register and verifying data, and second, publishing information as open data. The “Support for Digital Transformation” project advocates the “open by default” principle, when administrators publish open data based on the results of developed electronic systems, and is interested in opening access to address register information.
As of November 2024, 170 communities and 14 large cities have completed the full verification of streets, representing more than a quarter of all addresses nationwide. Communities, excluding those in conflict zones or temporarily occupied territories, are participating in the verification process. The most active participants in the USRA project include communities from Lviv, Rivne, and Vinnytsia regions.
By the end of 2025, the goal is to verify 100% of streets and addresses at the local government level, prepare open datasets, and configure APIs to ensure interaction with all basic registers and information-communication systems.
During the event, experts discussed key aspects of creating and populating the Unified State Register of Addresses, issues of further verification and data publication, as well as the next steps for expanding access to information.
The discussions at the event and the feedback from participants will form the foundation for further stages of data population and verification in the USRA.
We invite you to submit proposals for publishing USRA datasets via the provided link.
The video recording of the discussion on verification challenges and data publication of the USRA is available here.
The Unified State Register of Addresses is developed with the support of the Ministry of Communities and Territories Development of Ukraine and the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine and made possible by the Digital Transformation Activity with support from USAID and UK Dev. East Europe Foundation is the implementing partner of DTA for the Unified State Register of Addresses.
The Data+ communication platform was developed by the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine and by the Digital Transformation Activity with support from USAID and UK Dev. The implementing partner is the BRDO.