The Government’s proposal to replace the 32 districts with three development regions enjoys the support of citizens across the country, according to Diana Chiriac, Head of the Local Public Administration Directorate within the Government. She made this statement during the public debate “Three regions instead of 32 districts: How the second-tier local public administration reform will be implemented”, organized by the IPN news agency. According to Chiriac, the future regions will be responsible for coordinating development policies and projects at the regional level, without taking over the responsibilities of local municipalities.

“There will be three development regions. We want them to be engines that will carry out the duties of developing the regions. They will not provide services. The essence will be within the municipalities. We want strong municipalities, which will provide services at the local level”, explained the head of the Local Public Administration Directorate within the Government.

Diana Chiriac stated that the reform aims for a clear delineation of responsibilities between regional and local administration. Thus, city halls would remain the main service providers for the population, while regional structures would focus on the development and strategic coordination of territories.

“These regions will not provide services. They will offer strategic development support at the regional level. The development regions will be for planning, evaluating, and implementing policies. They will provide methodological support to the town halls. 11 districts will be in the North region, 13 districts in the Central region, and 7 in the South. There will be 273 town halls. Taraclia will have a separate status, it does not fall into the southern zone. UTA Gagauzia remains separate. The municipalities of Chisinau and Balti retain their current status and mandate”, Diana Chiriac further stated.

The Government’s representative declared that, following consultations conducted in the field, the authorities have noted support for the model of the three development regions. “We have a social consensus regarding the three regions proposed by the Government and the people’s expectations”, pointed out Diana Chiriac.

Disclaimer: This material was produced by the IPN News Agency as part of the “Local Public Administration Reform in Dialogue” project, funded by the Ministry of Culture through the Media Subsidy Fund.