Moldovan Education Ministry launches acquisitions worth over 92 million lei for endowing Chisinau-based school canteens

The Ministry of Education and Research (MEC) has initiated two public procurement procedures, in order to endow canteens from schools of the Chisinau municipality with modern equipment and furniture, to ensure free meals for pupils,  including those in middle school, during the new academic year. The total value of the purchases exceeds 92 million lei (including value added tax).

The funds will be used to purchase cooking and thermal treatment equipment, refrigeration and ventilation systems, dishwashers, serving and storage equipment, as well as electrical and sanitary installations.

State Secretary of MEC Valentina Olaru said that school headmasters from Chisinau municipality had submitted the necessary requests very quickly, thus contributing to the rapid launch of the procurements.

“As for schools that requested equipment below the available limit, there will be an opportunity to supplement the necessary items with other useful goods for the proper work of the institution,” says Valentina Olaru.

The deadline for submitting offers is August 21, 2025. The equipment is planned to be delivered in November 2025. The public procurement procedures are open to all economic operators.

Minister of Education and Research Dan Perciun has earlier said that MEC's intervention in the modernization process of the capital's canteens was necessary, as “the Chisinau City Hall failed to approve the needed budget, blocking an essential project for children’s health and well-being.”

A total of 200 million lei was allocated through the Budget Plus project for modernizing school canteens of the country. The funds will be used for the renovation of canteens in over 1,000 schools nationwide. Half of this money will be distributed to schools in the Moldovan capital and the other half will go to schools in the districts.

MEC has earlier informed that, for the municipality of Chisinau, each institution had been allocated an initial fixed amount of 200,000 lei, to which a variable component was added, calculated based on the number of pupils in grades V-IX. Thus, the allocated amounts range from 241,500 lei for institutions with a small number of students to 2,304,100 lei for the largest institutions, which will additionally feed over 1,000 students.

Budget Plus is the largest financial package ever allocated by the government of Moldova for investment and economic growth. It includes financial resources totaling 8 billion lei. The allocations of resources were made possible thanks to support on behalf of the European Union.