Interacting

There are many ways citizens can 'interact' with their government. Public forums, advocacy campaigns, petitions, letter writing campaigns, roundtables, participation in public councils. Citizens can also interact with their government online.

In Ukraine there are numerous opportunities to interact online. This ability is partially provided for in the Law on Freedom of Information. But this law is inadequate and incomplete. A new law on Information with greater protections and freedoms is currently under debate.

In our survey of .ua.gov websites we found numerous ways citizens can interact with their government - hotlines, e-mail feedback forms, bulletins, chats, calendars, forums, surveys. You can visit government offices with these online features by clicking on the links in the tag box to the right.

Here are some tips on interacting with government online:

How to draft a good e-mail

1. Keep in mind that the person you are writing to is busy – it's best to keep initial questions or communications short and to the point, so that they are easy to respond to.
2. Give your contact time to respond. Just because they don't get back to you the same day doesn't they are ignoring you.
3. Be professional. If you begin by complaining or demanding something impolitely, it will be easy to ignore you. Keep a neutral tone and even tone.
4. Be sure to provide all the information your contact may need to respond effectively. Be brief, but be complete also. You may also want to include alternate means of contacting you, such as a phone number or postal address, and times you can be reached.

Keeping track of your interaction

It's always a good idea to keep a record of your communication with government agencies so you can be accurate in referring to past questions, who you communicated with, checking the timing of each message or post, and the quality of service you receive. This will help you achieve your objectives more quickly and effectively, while minimizing hassle for the people you are corresponding with.

The following .ua.gov websites have great mechanisms for interaction with citizens.