Japan provides 8 million dollars to back refugees, host communities of Moldova

Chisinau, 20 March /MOLDPRES/ - Two projects worth 8.44 million dollars in all, meant to enhance the resilience and back the refugees and host communities of Moldova, were launched in Chisinau today. The initiatives are financed by the government of Japan and will be implemented in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).   

The first project, amounting to 6.8 million dollars, will contribute to the energy, food and community security in Moldova. The second initiative, worth 1.64 million dollars, was launched to support the approaching of human security challenges from Moldova.   

Attending the event on initiatives’ launch, Prime Minister Dorin Recean said that, within the first project, about 85,000 households of Moldova would  be able to enhance their energy security through investments in the renewable energy. ‘’This project will regard the implementation of the farmers’ register, which will allow developing more programmes on support, namely to small- and medium-sized farmers. The second project is aimed at strengthening the security of the people from Moldova, who are directly hit by the consequences of the war in Ukraine, 1,200 refugees and 40,000 citizens of Moldova involved in the process of accommodation of refugees will receive this assistance. The same project will consolidate the capacity of the National Employment Agency for us to be able to back Moldova’s citizens, as well as the refugees to integrate into the society and on the labour market,’’ PM Dorin Recean noted.            

Ambassador of Japan to Moldova Yoichiro Yamada said the two projects were part of the package of 27 million dollars, announced by the government of Japan in last December as humanitarian assistance for the Ukrainian refuges and for the Moldovan communities which hosted these refugees.

„We will promote solutions based on biofuel improving the situation of more than 40,000 citizens. We will provide support to the government, to implement the food security strategy. We will approach also aspects regarding the community security, taking into account that the situation is so fragile and we must support the communities to continue their development. We will cooperate with the local authorities, thus consolidating the capacities of all actors, in order to cope with the crises they are facing,’’ Director of the UNDP Crisis Bureau Asako Okai said.        

According to statistics data, since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, about one million Ukrainian citizens have entered Moldova and more than 100,000 of them stay in Moldova in continuation.