On 23 June,  members of ‘Modernization of Local Public Services in the Republic of Moldova’ (MLPS) Project Steering Committee met in the second working session this year.  The event was attended by ministers from the Government of the Republic of Moldova, representatives of the State Chancellery, Regional Development Councils (North, Centre and South), directors of Regional Development Agencies, Congress of Local Public Administrations (CALM) management, heads of diplomatic missions – partners of MLPS project, as well as MLPS project representatives. The session was chaired  by Octavian Calmic, Vice Prime Minister, Minister of Economy and Chairman of MLPS Steering Committee who started the meeting thanking the development partners for the support provided.

Octavian Calmic, Vice Prime Minister, Minister of Economy: ‘MLPS is a very important project for the Republic of Moldova. And this meeting is and has to be used as a platform to discuss issues and solutions pertaining to regional development field. Thus, it is important to discuss here not only the activities held and results achieved in the first half of 2017, but also those planned for the second healf of the year. But it is only through dialogue and discussions that we can achieve the final expected results’.

Ambassador of Federal Republic of Germany to the Republic of Moldova and co-chairs of MLPS Steering Committee mentioned that: ‘GIZ ‘Modernization of Local Public Services in the Republic of Moldova’ (MLPS) Project was mandated by the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany to carry out its second phase in 2016-2018. Also, we are glad to inform you that as a result of last bilateral governmental consultations, MLPS project will be extended to the end of 2020. This timeframe will allow for the project’s ambitious goals to be achieved, including the future co-financing from the European Union for investments in the field of Water Supply and Sanitation and  Energy Efficiency in public buildings’.

H.E. Signe Burgstaller, Ambassador of Sweden to the Republic of Moldova: ‘We are very glad that there has been a broad and growing level of participation of all key groups of stakeholders during local and regional development. A dynamic and proactive involvement of civil society organisations in all the key processes will help us all achieve our objectives. Through this involvement of different actors it continues to be possible to promote regional development as a transparent and citizen-oriented policy field. This is crucial in order to improve the level of trust and confidence of citizens in relation to public institutions – especially in those parts of the country where there is a feeling of being disenfranchised and underprivileged. Only a well-informed, motivated and engaged citizenry provides the basis for a comprehensive and sustainable socio-economic development of Moldova’s regions’.

Aneil Singh, Head of Cooperation, EU Delegation to the Republic of Moldova: ‘Strengthening the development of the Republic of Moldova’s regions is an important objective for improving the quality of life of citizens across the country. The EU, Germany and other development partners have been supporting this project with the aim of improving the capacity of regional and local administrations to deliver and manage concrete investments in public infrastructure. The aim is also to develop a pipeline of viable projects. The EU is willing to continue to invest and support concrete implementation of these projects, for example in the area of water and energy efficiency’.

Philipp Johannsen, GIZ Country Director and MLPS Project Manager presented the progress report and the main challenges encountered during the reporting period, as well as the activities planned. Also, he informed the members of the Steering Committee about the completion of his mandate in the Republic of Moldova and thanked the authorities of the Republic of Moldova and development partners for involvement and results achieved during the last seven years.

The project ‘Modernization of Local Public Services in the Republic of Moldova’ (MLPS) is implemented by the German Development Cooperation through GIZ and is financially supported by the German Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the Swedish Government, the Romanian Government, the European Union and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC).

For more details discussed during the event, please access the presentation HERE.