Functioning of the institution of state secretaries as a condition of providing institutional memory in public administration

This article analyzes the home country experience of implementing state secretary positions in the central governmental bodies and the foreign multi-year practice in the functioning of these positions. The implementation of state secretary positions in the Ministries is ascertained to be one of the most important elements of civil service reform that brings public administration of Ukraine closer to the European standards. The author states that the formation of the institution of state secretaries ought to become a basic condition of observance of the principle of continuity in the system of civil service, and to support the preservation of institutional memory in the system of executive bodies, the provision of their stable functioning and the effective use of the acquired professional experience and knowledge of civil servants.