Moldovan PM attends enlarged meeting of Administrative Council of Congress of Local Authorities of Moldova

Prime Minister Vasile Tofan today attended an enlarged meeting of the Administrative Council of the Congress of Local Authorities of Moldova (CALM). At the event, he discussed with representatives of local public administration the reform of public administration, strengthening the capacity of local government offices and preparing communities for European integration.

The PM emphasized that local public administration reform was necessary to reduce administrative fragmentation, use public funds more efficiently and create stronger local government offices capable of providing quality services to citizens.

“If we care about our country, we must understand that consolidation is necessary. We cannot remain the most fragmented country in Europe. We have chosen the path of voluntary amalgamation, a more democratic approach in which we allow people and mayors to decide,” the prime minister said.

Vasile Tofan stressed that the amalgamation process was complex and raises questions and concerns in communities. At the same time, the prime minister emphasized that maintaining the current situation was not a solution, given that some local government offices have administrative expenses that significantly exceed their own revenues.

In the context, the PM referred to reorganizing public administration at the district level by moving from 32 districts to 3 regions. According to him, the change will make it possible to reduce administrative expenses, transfer more powers and assets to local communities and strengthen their autonomy.

Particular emphasis was placed on preparing local public administration for Moldova’s accession to the European Union and making use of European funding opportunities: “The most important thing is to prepare ourselves to bring the country into the European Union. We will not be able to get structural funds and European grants with local government offices serving 700, 1,200, or 2,500 people. We must have the capacity to attract and implement these funds.”

The discussions also addressed financial decentralization, strengthening local autonomy, the remuneration of employees in local public administration and the challenges faced by local government offices in their work.

The government has proposed a new administrative and territorial configuration of Moldova: 273 local government offices and 3 regions – North, Center, and South. Chișinău and Balti will keep their status as municipalities, Taraclia will become a level-II municipality and the Autonomous Territorial Unit of Gagauzia will retain its special status. The reform was discussed with approximately 115,000 people during more than 1,200 meetings with citizens.

Citizens can search for each locality, to see which local government office and region it will belong to and how many residents it will have. The map is available at www.primariiputernice.gov.md/harta