A forum dedicated to boosting the absorption of European funds by the Republic of Moldova as a candidate country for joining the European Union was organized on Friday in Budești commune, Chisinau municipality.
The event brought together over a hundred participants, including local elected officials, health care and education workers, decision-makers from Moldova and Romania. The event was organized by the Institute for Project Development and Expertise (IDEP) Moldova.
Iurie Calestru, program director at IDEP, noted during a press conference that Moldova, thanks to a pro-European government, managed to obtain the status of a candidate for EU accession. But, in his opinion, the status comes with a responsibility to prepare a platform and create conditions for the absorption of European funds. To this end, since January 2022, IDEP has organized monthly trainings attended by over 360 heads of public institutions to improve their project management skills. The trainers are Romanian experts in various fields. Also, participants from Moldova traveled to Romania to exchange good practices regarding the development of communities with European funds.
Nina Costiuc, mayor of Budești, thanked the organizers for choosing her commune as the forum’s location. “We are t interested in learning, in borrowing the practices of our Romanian colleagues so that we can make the right steps on our European path and are prepared to absorb European funds. It is the most difficult segment of the road - our preparation to absorb the funds, we have to learn as we go”, noted Nina Costiuc.
In her opinion, inter-community projects must take into account localities that need water, sewage, modern infrastructure, to be attractive, to create jobs, but not least to create conditions for local residents.
Sorin Năcuță, Romanian MP, mentioned that Romania has a history in the European family and after so many years of membership it can say that it made the right decision - it has become a modern state, living standards have increased, and democracy has strengthened. And these objectives should be followed by Moldova as well. “Romania is just as interested as the Republic of Moldova that things go well, and that the Republic of Moldova has the shortest possible path to integration into the European Union and that you benefit, use the funds made available by EU for development”, said the Romanian lawmaker.
