12 communities on both banks of the Nistru will benefit from EU and UNDP support for local development initiatives

12 communities on both banks of the Nistru river have been selected to benefit from support for local development. They are: Holercani, Coșnița, Cârnățeni, Sănătăuca, Puhăcheni and Hârbovăț (on the right bank), as well as Rașcov, Gîsca, Teiul, Pervomaisc, Butor and Ternovca (on the left bank). Communities will be guided to involve the population in planning and monitoring local development. The support is provided by the European Union through the “Confidence Building Measures” programme implemented by UNDP.

“UNDP has successfully developed and tested an innovative model of engaging diaspora in local development and has helped to create more than 100 initiative groups and hometown associations. We aim to scale up this experience to improve local infrastructure and services and strengthen local governance,” said Olesea Cazacu, Programme Analyst at UNDP Moldova.

The 12 selected localities will be guided by civil society organisations – the Alliance of the Hometown Associations and the Tiraspol Regional Development Agency, which signed a cooperation agreement on 24 May 2024. 

For one year, the 12 communities will be assisted in identifying, formulating, planning, and implementing local initiatives. Thus, by involving men and women, community members and diaspora in local development processes, financial and human potential will be harnessed, which will contribute to improving the quality of life on both banks of the Nistru river and building trust.

“The village of Holercani is always looking for different opportunities to develop the locality in terms of infrastructure, as well as culture, sports and education domains and that is why we are here and we are very happy to have been selected. We are confident that this initiative will be to the benefit of the community,” said Tudor Tanasev, mayor of Holercani village. 

“First of all, we get to know each other and learn from the experience of other communities. Why is such an initiative important? It’s the only way to contribute to better living of community members and this motives you to want to do more and better for your community”, says Marina Yaskova, representative of the CSO “Motivation” in Ternovca.

In the second phase, six infrastructure projects will be selected, three projects for each bank, which will be implemented with funding provided by the EU programme “Confidence Building Measures”, implemented by UNDP.

By supporting these 12 localities, the European Union is continuing its support for improving cooperation between communities on both banks of the Nistru river through joint projects involving local partners, civil society organisation,s and other stakeholders.

The “Confidence Building Measures” programme, funded by the European Union and implemented by UNDP, contributes to building trust between the inhabitants of both banks of the Nistru river by involving them in joint development projects.