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11/18/2015
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Ucci hosts Ukrainian delegation at the State House
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 STATE HOUSE – Rep. Stephen R. Ucci yesterday hosted a delegation of community leaders from Ukraine at the State House as part of an exchange program to promote understanding and cooperation between American and Eurasian leaders.
The delegation is being hosted in Rhode Island by the Rotary Club of Scituate as part of the Open World program. The visitors, who were nominated by the Rotary Club of Truskavets, Ukraine, include two entrepreneurs, a deputy director of research and planning, a newspaper editor, a professor and their facilitator. An interpreter accompanied the delegation.
The group’s Nov. 13-through-Nov. 21.visit to Rhode Island is designed with a theme of accountable governance, focusing on civil society monitoring and voting of local elected officials. The visitors are interested in learning about the system of local government, decision-making processes within government and how authorities are selected, voting procedures and equipment, and how citizens get information about the activities of their local government.
Representative Ucci (D-Dist. 42, Johnston, Cranston) spoke to the group in the House chamber after they toured the State House, explaining how Rhode Island’s General Assembly works under the state constitution, how powers are divided between the federal, state and local governments, how Rhode Island’s 75 representatives interact with their constituents, each other and legislative leaders, and how legislation travels through the General Assembly to become law.
“This is a great opportunity to build understanding between cultures and to help local leaders from across the globe learn from our experience with democracy. Hopefully, what they see here will be something they will share with other leaders when they return home, and may help them strengthen their own democracy and increase the transparency of their own government,” said Representative Ucci, became connected to the visiting delegation through a classmate at Leadership RI who is involved with the Scituate Rotary Club.
Members of the delegation listened intently with the assistance of the interpreter, and were particularly interested in learning about the voting equipment used in Rhode Island, since they are interested in investing in such equipment in their country.
IN PHOTO: Rep. Stephen R. Ucci, center, in the House chamber with a delegation from Ukraine and Micheline Lombardi of the Scituate Rotary Club, second from right.
For more information, contact:
Meredyth R. Whitty, Publicist
State House Room 20
Providence, RI 02903
(401) 222-1923
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