Moldovan government proposes for public consultation rules allowing amalgamated localities to use infrastructure projects' incentives

The government has submitted for public consultation a draft regulation establishing the rules under which voluntarily amalgamated localities will finance infrastructure projects through the second incentive from the Voluntary Amalgamation Fund, meant for investments. The deadline for submitting proposals on the draft is September 21.

Government Secretary-General Alexei Buzu said that, according to the document, investments may be directed toward such areas as local roads, streets, bridges and culverts; water supply and sewerage; public lighting and energy efficiency in public buildings; social infrastructure; waste management and the development of public spaces.

The authorities are also proposing a single procedure for using the resources, consisting of four stages: launching the process, submitting projects to the Regional Development Agency (ADR), evaluating them and approving the list of projects together with the annual financing plan.

Projects may be submitted by the mayoralty-administrative center on behalf of all localities in the cluster, based on a decision of the local council.

The initiatives may be implemented in two ways. The first sees that the mayoralty implements the project, with methodological support of the ADR. The second stipulates that ADR implements the project and transfers the completed investment to the mayoralty. The choice depends on the beneficiary’s previous experience with capital investment projects.

Also, according to the draft submitted for public consultation, the initiators must ensure that all costs related to preparing the technical documentation and cost estimates are eligible, and that the investment is maintained for at least five years after completion.

The local public administration reform was launched by the government at the beginning of 2026 and aims to strengthen the administrative capacity of mayoralties and improve public services.

According to data presented by the authorities, 561 mayoralties of Moldova have adopted final decisions on voluntary amalgamation, representing 63 per cent of all mayoralties of the country. A total of 4.5 billion lei has been allocated to support communities that chose voluntary amalgamation.