Nearly 1,900 hectares of land in north Moldova district to be connected to modernized irrigation system

Around 1,900 hectares of agricultural land in the northern Briceni district will gain access to a modernized irrigation system after three centralized systems in the localities of Tetcani, Corjeuti and Beleavinti are rehabilitated and interconnected. The works contract, worth approximately 11.8 million US dollars, was signed on today in Chișinău within the Investment for Governance, Growth and Resilience in Agriculture (AGGRI) Project, financed by the World Bank.

The project provides for the reconstruction of three storage reservoirs and the construction of a new reservoir, the building of three new pumping stations and the modernization of three existing stations. Approximately 32 kilometers of distribution networks and about 15 kilometers of adduction pipelines will also be installed, along with other related infrastructure elements.

According to the Agriculture and Food Industry Ministry, for the first time, farmers in Tetcani and Corjeuti will have access to water from the Prut River through a new pumping station. At the same time, the locality of Beleavinti will be supplied from the Vilia River, via a storage reservoir built specifically for this purpose.

Agriculture and Food Industry Minister Ludmila Catlabuga said that the development of irrigation infrastructure was one of the priorities of the national agricultural policy.

“Moldova has potential; it has farmers who want to produce more and better, and our role is to create the necessary conditions for this potential to be harnessed. We want to produce good and high‑quality products for our citizens, but also to be able to diversify exports and contribute to integration into the European Union’s single market,” the minister said.

According to estimates, the rehabilitation of the irrigation systems will increase agricultural productivity in the serviced areas by approximately 50 per cent compared to the average of the last ten years.

The executive director of the Consolidated Unit for the Implementation and Monitoring of Agricultural Projects (UCIMPA), Olga Sainciuc, noted that the project in Briceni was the second major irrigation project implemented through AGGRI, after the one in the localities of Crocmaz and Caplani, Stefan Voda district, where the works are nearing completion. “

For the farmers in Briceni, today’s signing is not a protocol event, but a commitment that, at the end of implementation, they will have access to water where they currently do not have it,” said Olga Sainciuc.

The construction and modernization works are to begin in the coming weeks and will be completed in about two years.

The AGGRI Project is financed by the World Bank Group and aims to strengthen the resilience of Moldova’s agricultural sector, including by expanding access to modern irrigation systems, in the context of increasingly frequent climate events and the need to enhance the competitiveness of agriculture.