OREANDA-NEWS. March 25, 2010. As "InfoMarket" was informed in the government, it is provided by the assistance program for Moldova for 2011-2013, which was signed last night in Brussels by the Prime Minister of Moldova Vladimir Filat and European Union Commissioner for Expansion and European Neighborhood Policy Stefan Fьle on behalf of the Moldovan Government and the development partners. The document was signed following the meeting of the Consultative Group - Forum "Partnership for Moldova”, which was held under the auspices of the European Commission and the World Bank, with participation of 32 bilateral and 10 multilateral development partners of Moldova.

Within the forum strategic priorities and the program of reforms of the Government of Moldova, macroeconomic situation and a program of promotion of structural economic and social reforms, the needs of Moldova in foreign assistance and strategy of improving efficiency of this aid were presented. Signing of the Assistance Program to Moldova for 2011-2013 was a response of the donor community to the request of the republic to support the reforms’ implementation. Financial assistance for Moldova was approved by the Advisory Group of the Council of donors, the European Commission, the World Bank, the United Nations, Department for International Development (DFID), Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA) and other European financial institutions.

It is planned that funds allocated to the country in the form of grants and concessional loans will be used for reforms within the framework of "Reviving Moldova" Program in the field of health, education, justice, infrastructure, industry, agriculture, energy, transport and other areas. In particular, the funds will be used to implement the new anti-corruption strategy, promote public-private partnership, rehabilitate irrigation systems, national roads, promote gas, energy sector reform, restructure the health care system, upgrade schools, develop socio-economic infrastructure, etc. The Prime Minister of Moldova Vladimir Filat thanked the development partners for assistance and expressed the belief that very soon they will be proud to have supported the republic on the path of reforms and modernization. EU Commissioner for Expansion and Neighborhood Policy Stefan Fule said that the EU fully supports the government’s program "Reviving Moldova."Moldova is a close partner and we are interested that it is more stable and prosperous.

Stability at the EU border also bring stability to EU ", - the commissioner said. The World Bank Regional Director for Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova Martin Raiser said that the Moldovan leadership is aware of consistent and long-term measures to ensure the prosperity of the country and the Moldovan authorities have already shown that they are committed to the path of liberalization of the economy, fight corruption, reform justice and ensure effective governance in the public sector. As the representatives of EC and the WB noted at the meeting, many European countries were affected by the crisis, but Moldova has suffered more than others. From 2004 up to 2008 country’s GDP annually increased by 6%, but decreased by 7.5% last year. Combating poverty reduction has stopped and there was a risk that the flow of foreign investment would terminate. The prolonged election process and the complex political situation have provoked crisis in the public finance.

However, as representatives of the EC and the World Bank emphasized, within eight months the new Moldovan government has taken decisive steps to overcome the legacy of political and economic problems and has already managed to create a foundation for more competitive economy and transparent governance. Moldova has firmly proved its participation in the European Neighborhood Policy and its regional platform. It is planned that the financial assistance offered by international financial institutions as well as multilateral and bilateral partners will support implementation of reforms in the country. Such broad support should be a guarantee to achieve necessary goals. The representatives of EC and the World Bank noted that the Moldovan authorities are provided with necessary international support to move forward and implement their ambitious reforming plans.