MOLDPRES INTERVIEW // Moldexpo Exhibition Centre on threshold of major transformation; director Zinaida Popa: “Business must meet and create connections”

The Moldexpo International Exhibition Centre aims to enter a new stage of development and, in the long term, transform into Moldova Expo Park – a modern and dynamic space operating throughout the year and connecting companies, producers, investors and the public.

The new vision involves more than simply changing the name; it entails rethinking the role and use of this territory: from a centre that is particularly active during trade fair periods to a platform for exhibitions, conferences, forums, business meetings, cultural events and experiences for the public.

In an exclusive interview with MOLDPRES, Zinaida Popa, director of the “Moldexpo” International Exhibition Centre, speaks about this transformation and the institution’s plans for the coming years.





MOLDPRES: How do you see the role of the Moldexpo International Exhibition Centre in the national economy and in promoting products and companies from Moldova, including on foreign markets? What contribution can the institution make to promoting the country’s image?

Zinaida Popa: MOLDEXPO can no longer be viewed merely as a space where exhibitions are organized more times a year. Our role is much broader: to be a platform that connects companies, producers, investors and the public and creates real development opportunities.

For our producers, an exhibition means visibility, but it must also mean new contacts, partnerships and access to other markets. At the same time, every international event organized here is also a calling card for Moldova. We do not present products alone. We present the country’s capacity to produce, innovate, create and build partnerships.

However, the exhibition industry is changing, and we must change with it. Therefore, our objective is to transform MOLDEXPO from a traditional exhibition centre into a platform active throughout the year, relevant to business, investment, culture and the community.

    



MOLDPRES: You took over the leadership of MOLDEXPO approximately one year ago, after a period of interim management. What situation did you find the institution in, what were the first measures you considered necessary, and what results from this first year of your mandate would you highlight?

Zinaida Popa: In fact, the interim period gave me the opportunity to get to know the institution very well before taking on the full mandate. I saw both MOLDEXPO’s enormous potential and the problems accumulated over time: infrastructure requiring investment, internal processes that needed updating and, perhaps most importantly, the need for a new vision regarding how a modern exhibition centre should operate.

We started with internal order and the professionalization of processes, because you cannot talk about external development, if the institution does not operate efficiently internally. We worked on standardizing processes, improving service quality, revitalizing the infrastructure and opening the grounds to new types of activities.

An important indicator is the return of the public. In 2025, MOLDEXPO recorded approximately 294,000 visitors, more than twice as many as in 2024, while the interim data for 2026 confirms that there is interest in this platform.

But for me, the most important result of this period is that we moved from the day-to-day administration of MOLDEXPO to building a development strategy. Today, we are no longer discussing only which exhibition comes next, but what this place should look like in five, ten or twenty years.





MOLDPRES: MOLDEXPO has undergone an ISO certification process with the involvement of experts from Romania. What changes has this brought about in the institution’s activity, and what does maintaining the certificate following periodic external evaluations mean?

Zinaida Popa: For us, ISO certification was not a certificate to put on the wall, but an internal process of change.

In September 2025, MOLDEXPO obtained ISO 9001 certification from Bureau Veritas Romania, becoming the first joint-stock company with wholly state-owned capital of Moldova to get this certification. The process involved evaluating and standardizing internal procedures, customer relations and the way we measure performance and service quality.

And the real challenge begins after obtaining the certificate. On 29 September this year, we underwent the first surveillance audit conducted by Bureau Veritas in Bucharest to maintain ISO 9001:2015 certification.

For me, this is the real value of the standard: it forces you not to return to old practices. You must constantly measure, correct and improve. Ultimately, the beneficiaries – our exhibitors, partners and visitors – must feel this change.





MOLDPRES: You announced the transformation of MOLDEXPO into Moldova Expo Park, marking a new stage in the centre’s development. What does this transformation involve, and what will concretely change compared with the current MOLDEXPO, both in terms of infrastructure and the concept and scale of the events organized? You also sought international expertise. What are the main recommendations put forward by the experts, and what investments are needed to implement the project?

Zinaida Popa: Moldova Expo Park does not mean a simple change of name, but a change in the way we view this territory and its role. We want to move from the traditional model of an exhibition centre, that is particularly active during trade fair periods, to a vibrant space operating throughout the year – for exhibitions, conferences, forums, business meetings, culture and experiences for the public.

At the same time, we must also change what we offer companies. Today, it is no longer enough to provide stand space. We want to develop modern B2B matchmaking tools, so that exhibitors and potential buyers or partners can be connected before an exhibition opens, while the commercial relationship can continue after the event ends.

In developing this vision, we also sought international expertise, and one of the important conclusions was that Moldova should not mechanically copy the models of giant exhibition centres. We need a flexible model adapted to the size of our economy, but built according to international standards.

Therefore, priority investments target basic infrastructure, energy efficiency, accessibility, the modernization and increased flexibility of the pavilions, as well as technological development. All of this must be carried out in stages through a balanced combination of investments, institutional partnerships and the attraction of private capital wherever there is commercial viability.

The ambition is for Moldova Expo Park to be more than a place where you come to an exhibition and leave; it should be a space where business meets, creates connections and returns throughout the year.





MOLDPRES: Alongside its exhibition activity, you initiated a major project to develop the area adjacent to MOLDEXPO and transform it into a recreational and sports space. What stage is the project at, what will it include and when could it become accessible to the public?

Zinaida Popa: This is, in fact, one of the first examples of how the Moldova Expo Park vision is beginning to become visible on the ground. 

We started from the idea that such a valuable territory should not be active only when we have an exhibition. The former Adventure Park area was included in a transparent leasing process through auctions, strictly for sports, recreation and gastronomy activities. At the same time, we are working to improve access and public spaces.

An important project is the sakura avenue, which will create a better connection with the Valea Morilor (Mills’ Valley) area and will include modern lighting, urban furniture, recreation areas and a new access area to the complex.

The logic is simple: we want people to have a reason to come here not only for an exhibition, but also on an ordinary day. Once MOLDEXPO becomes part of the city’s everyday life, its transformation into an Expo Park will truly begin.

MOLDPRES: The MOLDEXPO International Exhibition Centre is to be included on the investment opportunities map of the Investment Agency. What does this mean for the institution, and what opportunities could it open up for attracting investors, developing infrastructure and launching new projects?

Zinaida Popa: It is very important for us that Moldova Expo Park not be viewed exclusively as a project of a state-owned enterprise. It can become an investment opportunity.

Inclusion on the investment map gives us the opportunity to present the territory’s potential to investors analyzing Moldova in a more structured way. The context is favourable: Moldova Business Week focuses precisely on connecting local companies with investors, capital and international partners.

Our role is to come forward with clear projects and transparent cooperation models. The investor must understand not only that land or space is available, but also what the concept is, what can be developed there, who the audience is and how their investment fits into a broader vision.

We are talking about complementary facilities that MOLDEXPO cannot develop solely from its own resources, such as hospitality services, modern logistics spaces or related facilities for international conferences.

We do not want investment for investment’s sake. We want partners who add value to the Moldova Expo Park concept.

MOLDPRES: You announced your intention to develop a partnership between exhibition centres of Moldova and Slovenia. What will this cooperation concretely involve, and what benefits can it bring to Moldovan exhibitors and producers? Are you considering extending similar partnerships to other countries?

Zinaida Popa: The partnership with Slovenia is the first step towards very practical cooperation between exhibition centres. As part of MOLDAGROTECH, we will apply a reciprocity mechanism: we will offer our Slovenian partners space to present their country and companies in Chisinau, while Moldova will, in turn, benefit from exhibition space in Slovenia.

It is a very advantageous mechanism, because it allows us to promote Moldova and our producers on foreign markets without the cost of exhibition space, while around these participations we can organize B2B meetings, economic missions and direct contacts between companies.

And we are not stopping with Slovenia. We are already discussing the development of similar collaborations with exhibition centres of Greece and Kazakhstan, and our intention is to gradually expand this network.

For me, this is also the meaning of a partnership between exhibition centres: not merely an exchange of experience between institutions, but reciprocal access to markets and concrete opportunities for the business community.

MOLDPRES: Participation in international exhibitions can be an important way to promote Moldovan products. How can MOLDEXPO help local producers reach such events and, above all, turn participation into business contacts and contracts?

Zinaida Popa: The participation of Moldova in international exhibitions is a priority direction for us, and MOLDEXPO has a particular responsibility here as well. By government decisions, our institution has been designated as the entity responsible for organizing Moldova’s participation in World Expos – global-scale events, such as those in Milan, Dubai and Osaka and, in the future, the World Expo in Saudi Arabia.

Why is this presence so important? Because at such events, we do not go merely to occupy exhibition space. We go to make Moldova known. It is an opportunity to show who we are, what we produce, what we can offer and why foreign companies and investors should look towards Moldova.

Around these participations, we also organize economic missions that create direct opportunities for our companies to meet potential partners, investors and representatives of the business community from other countries. From this perspective, World Expos are not only image-building events, but also instruments of economic diplomacy and promotion of Moldovan business.

It is essential for us that international presence generate continuity. Visibility is the first step; the next must be connection, and connection must be transformed, wherever there is potential, into partnerships and economic relations.

Therefore, MOLDEXPO’s role is not limited to organizing exhibitions at home. We have the responsibility and ambition to contribute to Moldova’s presence on major international platforms and to create, through this presence, concrete opportunities for our companies and products.





MOLDPRES: Which exhibition activities and trade fairs will mark the end of 2026? Which events do you believe will have a particular impact on the business community and the public?

Zinaida Popa: We began this autumn with MOLDMEDIZIN & MOLDDENT, and I can say that this year’s edition was unprecedented for MOLDEXPO. MOLDEXPO has never before hosted an event of such scale in the fields of medicine and dentistry. And this is not merely our assessment – it is the feedback we received from participating companies, industry professionals, the business community and the public.

We succeeded in transforming the exhibition into a genuine professional and business platform, with modern technologies and solutions, an exchange of experience, direct contacts between specialists and companies, and a programme that attracted a large audience. MOLDMEDIZIN & MOLDDENT demonstrated that we can organize major specialized events in Chisinau and that there is both demand and interest in them. For us, this is a benchmark that we want not only to maintain, but to surpass.

And the season continues. From 15 to 18 October, MOLDAGROTECH follows, one of our flagship exhibitions for the agro-industrial sector. We will then have BEAUTY AUTUMN, dedicated to the beauty industry and its professionals, EXPO MOBILA, which brings together manufacturers and companies from the furniture and interior design industries, and GIFT EXPO, which will close the year’s exhibition calendar.

Our ambition is for each of these events to grow not only in the number of participants, but also in the quality of its content, the presence of companies, its professional component and the experience offered to visitors. What we achieved this year with MOLDMEDIZIN & MOLDDENT clearly shows us the level to which we want to take MOLDEXPO’s entire exhibition portfolio.





MOLDPRES: Looking three to five years ahead, where do you want Moldova Expo Park to be, and what is the main objective you would like to achieve during your mandate? What role should the new centre have for the business community and for positioning Moldova on the regional exhibition map?

Zinaida Popa: At the end of my mandate, I would like us not to speak only about having renovated some pavilions or developed more areas. I would like us to be able to say that we fundamentally changed MOLDEXPO’s development model.

I want Moldova Expo Park to be a vibrant space throughout the year: a place where business, investment, culture, local producers and the community meet; a place where Moldovan companies find partners and foreign companies discover the opportunities offered by Moldova.

MOLDEXPO is public heritage that extends beyond the duration of a mandate or the name of a director. My responsibility is to leave behind a stronger, more modern institution with a strategic development direction that can continue regardless of who leads it in the future.

If, in a few years, Moldova Expo Park is recognized not only as a place where exhibitions are organized, but as one of the region’s main business platforms connecting Moldova with investors, companies and international partners, then I will be able to say that this stage has achieved its purpose.

The history of “Moldexpo” began in 1956, when the Permanent Republican Agricultural Exhibition was inaugurated on its current site; it was later transformed into one of Moldova’s most important exhibition centres. Around 20 of its own exhibitions and trade fairs are held annually on the “Moldexpo” platform, in addition to exhibition, business and leisure events organized by third parties. The complex attracts companies and producers from Moldova, as well as foreign participants: more than 20 countries have chosen Moldexpo facilities for national exhibitions and trade fairs. Depending on the profile of the exhibition, the events are addressed both to professionals and the business community and to the general public.