eu project page - EU for Moldova

EU4Moldova: Focal Regions (Cahul and Ungheni)

Project Description

The EU4Moldova: Focal Regions Programme will focus on strengthening the economic, territorial and social cohesion in the Republic of Moldova through facilitating inclusive, sustainable and integrated local socio-economic growth and improving the standards of living of the citizens in two focal regions: Ungheni and Cahul. The programme will support the two regions targeting necessary improvements in three areas:
- at the level of local government – to improve the necessary services and the needed infrastructure;
- at the level of the private sector – to stimulate private investment, improve the economy and create employment opportunities for the men and women;
- at the population level – to strengthen citizens participation in democratic governance processes and strengthen their capacities to demand their rights.

Specific Objective

- To strengthen transparency, accountability of local public authorities and citizen participation in local governance processes in the focal regions.
- To improve citizens’ access to quality public services and utilities in the focal regions.
- To create employment opportunities for men and women in the focal regions and improve the attractiveness of the focal regions for investors and entrepreneurs.
- To promote the smart specialisation of the economy of the focal regions through the development of the clustering and value chain approach in key economic sectors.

Expected Results

- Increased institutional capacity of LPAs for the implementation of locally-driven environmentally compliant socio-economic development strategy for integrated local growth and development.
- Improved broader stakeholder (e.g. CSO, private sector) engagement in the planning and monitoring of the socio-economic development strategy.
- Increased quality and availability of public services delivery, including in particular those targeting women; and increased performance of local public utilities.
- More favorable conditions for the attraction of investments, job creation and women and men’s entrepreneurship, including social entrepreneurship.
- Development and functioning of clusters in line with the smart specialization approach.