A cup of coffee at Europe Café is the perfect occasion to stop and enjoy a sip of fresh news and interesting insights about the EU-Moldova cooperation.

In this edition, we’ll share with you the main results achieved after seven years of AA/DCFTA in the Republic of Moldova and invite you to the Ex-post evaluation of the implementation of the DCFTA Workshop. You will learn about the new EU funded project to support Moldovan citizens to overcome energy crisis and the cross-border cooperation we have just initiated.

See it yourself.

Debating 7 years of AA/DCFTA in the Republic of Moldova

On 20 January 2022, Europe Café hosted an online public event, aimed to increase awareness among citizens and businesses from Moldova on the status of implementation and the benefits of the AA/DCFTA related reforms.

The event gathered around 35 participants: EU MS Embassies, Moldova’s development partners, representatives of the Ministry of Economy, Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry, National Agency for Food Safety, EBA Moldova, business community, and mass media.

Interesting facts:

• Through the EU4Business initiative in 2020, 30 bilateral regional projects are under implementation in Moldova, with a budget of 173 million Euros, more than 11 000 new jobs were created & over 19 000 SMEs were supported.
• The growth in exports to the EU in 2020 contributed to the generation of almost 1.4 billion Euro in revenue for the country’s economy by over 70% of the exporting companies.
• The EU remains the most important market for Moldova, with trade in 2020 amounting to about $ 4 billion, which represents 52.3% of Moldova’s total trade.
• In 2021, the EU remained and consolidated its position as Moldova’s largest trading partner, accounting for more than a half of Moldova’s total trade. About 2/3 of Moldovan exports went to the EU in 2021.
• The EU is Moldova’s biggest source of investments, with a share of FDI in Moldova – 82% in 2020 and 86% in Q3, 2021;
• Top products exported to the EU in 2020 are machinery, electrical appliances and equipment, oilseeds and fruit, clothing and accessories furniture, fruits and nuts, animal and vegetable fats and oils, alcoholic beverages and liquids, etc.

EU funded Project Launching Event

On 4 February, Europe Café proudly hosted the launching of a 5 million euros project ” Supporting together the vulnerable population affected by the energy crisis” funded by the European Union and implemented by People in Need-Moldova, with the involvement of the Moldovan Government LPAs. The project activities will be completed in April 2023.

What is this project about?

The aim of the project is to provide support to vulnerable groups in Moldova affected by the energy crisis. The project activities are planned for 16 months, during which it will support low-income families and people in difficult life situations with financial and material aid, as needed.

Who will benefit from support under the project?

• Older people
• Low-income families and families with many children
• People with disabilities and other disadvantaged groups
• Social service providers and civil society organizations.

What activities and interventions will be carried out?

• 40,000 households will receive one-off financial support during the cold season
• 6,000 households will receive fire materials
• Around 20 social service providers and civil society organizations will receive grants to increase their capacity of providing social services to vulnerable groups
• A study will be carried out to analyze the extent to which the energy crisis has influenced the increase in debt of vulnerable populations
• Advocacy activities will be promoted, aimed at reducing the debt burden of vulnerable groups in society and explaining how the risk of debt can be decreased.

Cross border cooperation

Best ideas have once been thoughts shared. And then, one step leads to another growing into impactful actions.

But perhaps what’s even more important in this equation, is the people – likeminded people who share the same European values and the same goal of a #strongertogether future.

For us at Europe Café, this January started with a new friendship. Online.

Together with EUROPE DIRECT Vaslui, we took the first step into a fruitful collaboration and shared our best practices and experiences along with ideas for the upcoming year.

“The next step is to cement this relationship through joint activities with participation of the youth of the Moldovan network of EU Info Centers and EuroClubs.”