EU Supports a Cowboy-style Startup to Attract Tourists in Lviv Region, Ukraine

19 June 2018

Ukrainian amalgamated territorial community Nove Misto will create a unique tourist product by combining traditions of American cowboys and culture of ‘Boyky’ local ethnic group. A new tourist area of 6, 6 hectares will be located in Hrabivnytsia village, which is the part of the community territory just near the Polish border. The project titled “COWBOYky. Ukrainian Wild West” is funded by the EU under the Mayor for Economic Growth (M4EG) Initiative.

By developing a special tourist infrastructure in Western Ukraine, local authorities plan to attract around 40 thousand tourists annualy and raise external investments to the community. The EU-supported activity will include preparation of project design and documentation, installation of electricity, gas, water and sewage systems, building of some other objects for tourism sector. Implementation of the project commenced in May.

“Our idea is unique, because it will combine elements of daily life, traditions, architecture of the local ethnic group called Boyky with identical elements of American cowboy culture”, stated Petro Kulyas, Head of the Nove Misto community, main implementator of the project. “We will also develop and register a local tourist brand ‘COWBOYky’, design a brand mark and conduct a marketing campaign to attract tourists”, noted Mr. Kulyas.

External investors will get involved in the construction of a hotel for at least 100 people, restaurant, a horse stable, entairtainment infrastructure, concert venue, summer camps for shildren and other objects. This part of the initiative will create at least 50 new jobs for local people and will engage local businesses to produce and supply products for tourists in food industry (vegetable, fruit, meat and dairy products), transportation services, souvenir production etc.

“The cherry on the cake” will be a cowboy-style locomotive train to deliver tourists from Sambir city to their final destination place in Hrabivnytsya village. Localities from Nove Misto community also plan to create three different travel routes: historical (journey to the most attractive historical objects in the region), adventure and gastronomic. The last one will include visits to the local craft cheese factory, craft ice-cream shop, bakery with woodfired bread, greenhouses and other intersting sites.

Head of the Nove Misto amalgamated community Mr. Kulyas underlines, that “the project will become a real driving force for local economic growth and new jobs creation for local people”. Also a special Local Economic Development School will be developed as a training platform for those citizens who want to be employed in the tourism sector. At least 50 % of students in the school will be youth under 35 from the Nove Misto community. In general, the initiative will be crucial not only for local economy in Lviv region, but for harmonious development of all localities in Ukraine.

The M4EG pioneer project “COWBOYky. Ukrainian Wild West” is one of six projects to be implemented in Ukraine by Signatories to the Mayors for Economic Growth Initiative. Total budget for the initiative is one million Euro, out of which the EU will contribute 900 thousand Euro, Nove Misto amalgamated community – 100 thousand Euro. The duration of the project is 3 years.

More information in Ukrainian is available here https://zaxid.net/na_starosambirshhini_zbuduyut_kovboyske_turistichne_mistechko_n1456035