The Ministry of Regional Development of Moldova artificially postpones including Gagauzia in the process of implementing the Law on Regional Development and the National Regional Development Strategy. The Governor of Gagauzia Mihail Formuzal sent a letter with relevant complaints to Minister of Regional Development Marcel Raducan, IPN reports.

In his letter, Formuzal says that a technical working group for implementing the state regional development policy in Gagauzia was set up on May 2. The group consists of 11 persons, including five representatives of the legislative and executive powers of the autonomous unit. The group has held no meeting so far and this shows that the process of including Gagauzia in implementing the regional development policy is delayed artificially.

The National Regional Development Strategy was adopted by the Government of Moldova on August 21. As Deputy Minister of Regional Development and Construction Liviu Oboroc said when presenting the document, the strategy was worked out in cooperation with experts from France, Germany, the UK, Poland, and Romania. Under the strategy, the country will be divided into three regional development centers to which investments will be directed for infrastructure and social projects. The administration of Gagauzia said the strategy was designed without taking into account the opinions of official representatives of the region and thus does not ensure the autonomous unit’s full participation in the implementation of development programs.