● MONDAY, July 4
Tomatoes have fibrous pulp if they were grown with stimulants
Many of the tomatoes look attractive and have a nice color, but have yet an unpleasant taste. An increasing number of buyers complain about the poor quality of tomatoes sold at the market. Tomatoes producer from Drochia Tudor Darie said the tomatoes whose pulp is hard and fibrous were grown with stimulants used in an unbalanced way and with chemical preparations for hastening the ripening. “Some of the producers grow tomatoes on synthetic layers. A needle is put in the stem of the plant to water it with mineral fertilizers. As a result, the plant grows big and nice. The used advanced technologies stimulate the business entities to sell namely these products because they make the cost price the lowest, while the producers make the biggest profit,” stated Tudor Darie.
● TUESDAY, July 5
IMF mission to come to Chisinau
A new mission of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) arrives in Chisinau on July 5 and will work in Moldova until July 15. Prime Minister Pavel Filip signed an order to create the group that will negotiate a new Memorandum of Economic and Financial Policies between the Government and the IMF. The group of negotiators will be led by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy Octavian Calmac and includes Minister of Finance Octavian Armasu, Minister of Labor, Social Protection and Family Stela Grigoras and the governor of the National Bank of Moldova Sergiu Cioclea.
State will benefit from reduction in base rate on monetary policy operations, expert
The National Bank of Moldova announced a 3% reduction in the base rate on short-term monetary policy operations, from 13% to 10%. Contacted by IPN, economic expert Sergiu Gaibu said the state will be the first to benefit from this. As a consequence of the reduction in the base rate, the state securities will tend to decline. Respectively, the interest paid by the state on its debts to banking institutions will diminish. According to the expert, the base rate is the indicator used to calculate all the other rates applied by the National Bank of Moldova to overnight loans and deposits and to other financial instruments. That’s why the base rate indicates the trend of prices of financial resources and, especially, of the cost of operations promoted by the central bank.
Financial sustainability of Moldova depends on external assistance, report
The external assistance as a share of Moldova’s GDP remains under the level of 10% and tends to decline. However, the financial sustainability of Moldova continues to depend on external assistance, the Government’s deputy secretary general Valentin Guznac said when presenting the report on the external financial assistance provided to Moldova in 2015. The report was examined by the parliamentary commission on foreign policy and European integration in a meeting on July 5. Valentin Guznac stated that the external assistance is an important source for implementing infrastructure projects and an opportunity for strengthening the governmental institutions. “2015 was a difficult year for the country in terms of external assistance. The partners reported that they disbursed €331 million. The value of disbursements in 2015 decreased by 26% on 2014, while for the governmental sector by 38%. In 2005-2015, the value of international assistance rose from €112 million to over €300 million,” said the official.
Deputy Prime Minister Octavian Calmac meets with IMF mission
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy Octavian Calmac had a meeting with the IMF mission led by Ivanna Vladkova-Hollar that is in Moldova on a visit. Octavian Calmac was chosen to head the group of negotiators that will discuss the new Memorandum of Economic and Financial Policies between the Government and the IMF. According to the Ministry of Economy, the officials discussed the macroeconomic situation, the structural reforms implemented by the Moldovan authorities to improve corporate governance and the situation in the energy sector, in particular the measures taken by the authorities to solve the problems related to the supply of electric power, natural gas and heat and to modernize these segments.
Pavel Filip at meeting with IMF experts: We want to negotiate new agreement
The Moldovan authorities want to negotiate a new agreement with the IMF so as to ensure the country’s sustainable development, stated Prime Minister Pavel Filip, who had a meeting with the IMF mission led by Ivanna Vladkova-Hollar on July 5. According to the Government’s press service, the Premier said he is very glad to meet again the IMF team in Chisinau and appreciated the efforts made in this regard. He noted that owing to the close cooperation between the Government and Parliament, they managed to implement 68% of the actions included in the priority reform action roadmap. Among the main directions, Pavel Filip emphasized the justice sector reform and the reform of the financial-banking sector, the anticorruption measures and the improvement of the business climate, the public administration reform and cooperation with civil society.
Octavian Calmac and Dmitry Rogozin discuss products’ access to Russian market
The co-chairmen of the Moldovan-Russian intergovernmental commission for economic cooperation, Deputy Prime Minister of Moldova Octavian Calmac and Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Dmitry Rogozin, discussed the Moldovan products’ access to the Russian market and other matters related to the bilateral relations. In a press beefing after the commission’s meeting, Octavian Calmac said they conferred on the imposition of customs duties on Moldovan goods on the Russian market, transport services and on possibilities of extending the authorizing documents for carriers from Moldova so that these could work on the territory of the Customs Union created by Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan. For his part, Dmitry Rogozin said that a working group that will start work at the end of this month will be led by persons responsible to find solutions to the existing problems. A new meeting will be held in September and there they will exchange opinions on the work of this group. A full-format meeting of the intergovernmental commission could take place in November.
● WEDNESDAY, July 6
Local taxes raised in Chisinau
A number of taxes imposed in the municipality of Chisinau were raised. These include the taxes paid by owners of kiosks, gas stations and gaming halls. The draft decision on local taxes for 2016 was approved in the July 5 meeting of the Chisinau Municipal Council. At the suggestion of the Socialist councilors, the tax for each fuel dispenser at gas stations in the municipality will be 21,000 lei, up from 10,000 lei now. The Socialist councilors said there are 215 gas stations in the municipality at present and this figure is much higher than that stipulated in the urbanistic plan. According to them, the rise in taxes will prevent the chaotic appearance of service stations in the city.
Foreign Investors Association to provide assistance to Government in signing program with IMF
The Foreign Investors Association (FIA) will offer assistance to the Government in doing reforms and in signing a program with the International Monetary Fund. Such an agreement was reached in a meeting of FIA representatives and Prime Minister Pavel Filip. The sides discussed the reforms launched by the Government to create a favorable environment for developing and attracting investments to Moldova’s economy. According to the Government’s press office, FIA president Ridha Tekaia said the members of the Association will continue to support the implementation of reforms aimed at developing a favorable climate for the business sector. ”We understand the importance of signing an agreement with the International Monetary Fund and you can count on our assistance in achieving results in this respect. This agreement will open up a series of opportunities for the Republic of Moldova, including for attracting new investments,” stated Ridha Tekaia.
Russia to support reconstruction of irrigation system in Transnistria
The Russian Federation intends to allocate about 30 million rubles (approximately 9 million lei) for reconstructing and maintaining the irrigation system in the Transnistrian region, announced Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Dmitry Rogozin, who went to Tiraspol on July 6 as part of his official visit to the Republic of Moldova. The Russian official was quoted by the Transnistrian press as saying that Moscow lays emphasis on the development of the agrifood processing industry so that the agrifood reaches the Russian market not as raw material, but as finished products. According to Dmitry Rogozin, the export of finished agrifood products will guarantee their inoffensiveness and will bring higher revenues to the local producers.
● THURSDAY, July 7
Chisinau municipal budget approved in final reading
The municipal councilors on July 6 officially accepted the budget of Chisinau municipality in the final reading, by 44 votes in favor. The budget provides for incomes of 2.943 billion lei and a total expenditure of about 3.47 billion lei, with a deficit of over 103 million lei. The authors of the draft budget suggested that the budget deficit should be covered with the financial resources planned to be obtained from the sale of fixed assets and from internal and external sources of financing.
EU adviser: It is very important for NBM to become independent and technocratic
The National Bank of Moldova (NBM) has a multitude of supervision instruments and, if discovers a bank with problems, it should act immediately. It is very important for the NBM to become an independent and technocratic institution, EU adviser to the central bank Aldona Jočienė stated in an interview for Radio Free Europe. The adviser noted that a risk- and judgment-based anticipatory approach in accordance with the EU standards is important in the supervision process. “The priority reform action roadmap includes the most important measures that must be taken to resume the negotiations with the IMF. The solving of the problems faced in the banking sector is a priority. So, in this regard, the NBM already prepared the strategy for diminishing the vulnerabilities in the banking sector and works very closely with the IMF in this direction,” said Aldona Jočienė.
Council for Promoting Investment Projects holds first meeting
The Council for Promoting Investment Projects of National Importance came together for the first meeting, which was chaired by Prime Minister Pavel Filip. “I want this newly created Council not only to ensure an efficient dialogue between the Government and entrepreneurs, but to also represent a platform that will generate concrete solutions to the identified problems and will facilitate the work of the business community,” stated Pavel Filip. The Council will work out measures to solve different identified problems and will formulate legislative amendment proposals for removing the barriers to businesses and stimulating the flow of foreign direct and national strategic investment to the Moldovan economy.
● FRIDAY, July 8
ASITO under special administration
The National Commission for Financial Markets instituted special administration at the insurance company ASITO. A decision to this effect was taken by the Commission’s Administration Board on July 8. Boris Erushevschi, who is in charge of relations with the press, said the persons who signed contracts with ASTO will not be affected. According to him, the Commission named a person as executive director of the company. The special administration was instituted after ASITO director general Andrii Lupyr filed an application to the Commission, asking to withdraw the company’s license. Boris Erushevschi also said that ASITO is obliged to fulfill all its obligations to the clients and has all the financial possibilities of doing this.
WB provides US$10 million IDA credit for Moldovan agriculture
The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors approved a US$10 million IDA credit to the Republic of Moldova for the Moldova Agriculture Competitiveness Project 2nd Additional Financing Project. Alexander Kremer, World Bank Country Manager for Moldova, said that this project will help ordinary people in the countryside get jobs, even in difficult economic times. The new Moldova Agriculture Competitiveness Project 2nd Additional Finansing complements and builds upon the results of two earlier projects – the Moldova Agriculture Competitveness Project and the Moldova Agriculture Competitiveness Project Additional Finansing component.
Check-in area of Chisinau airport extended and fully renovated
The check-in area of the Chisinau Internationals Airport has been extended, reequipped and renovated. It was enlarged by 60%, from 680 to 1,100 square meters. The ceiling and floor were fully replaced by using materials that meet the anti-fire safety rules and sanitary norms. In a press release, “Avia Invest”, the company that manages the airport, says the LED lighting system was improved and the level of comfort in the check-in area was thus increased, while the electricity consumption was significantly reduced. In order to avoid crowdedness on check-in, there were set up six new registration desks, the number of counters being thus increased to 18. A new bag
gage handling system was added to the two existing conveyors. The baggage checking system was improved by installing new X-ray equipment.
● SATURDAY, July 9
Pavel Filip: Utilization of rural tourism heritage will have positive impact on economy
The cultural and historical facilities of the Republic of Moldova must be put to good use. Their infrastructure should be modernized and conditions should be created for attracting tourists. The utilization of the rural tourism heritage will have a positive impact on the national economy and will beneficially contribute to promoting the country’s image abroad, Prime Minister Pavel Filip said during a working visit to Rezina district. According to the Government’s press office, Pavel Filip underlined the necessity of repairing and promoting the facilities that hold interest for tourists and spoke about the development of the connected infrastructure and the creation of conditions needed for the number of national and foreign tourists to increase.
First Moldovan bilberries are grown on soil ‘imported’ from Belarus
The first plantation of bilberries in Moldova was set up owing to the possibility of bringing soil from Belarus. The Moldovan soil turned out to be not sufficiently acid for these berries that grow naturally in forests in such countries as Russia, Belarus and Ukraine, Iurie Tarai, manager of the company “Lolly Berry”, which is the first and only producer of bilberries in Moldova, said during a trip to his plantation in Dolna village of Straseni district, staged for journalists, bloggers and ordinary consumers. Iurie Tarai said that by the Agricultural Competiveness and Enterprise Development Project financed by the U.S., he obtained about half a million lei for purchasing and brining several dozen tonnes of soil from Belarus. These berries do not grow on soil with low acidity like that in Moldova and need swampy soil, as in the natural environment. The cuttings needed for planting 10 ha with bilberries were brought from Poland. The plantation is only two-years-old, but already started to yield. The berries are gathered by hand by inhabitants of Dolna and of neighboring villages, who are paid for their work.
Ecological agriculture to be promoted among farmers from both sides of the Nistru
Four associations from both sides of the Nistru River created a cooperation platform to promote ecological agriculture. These are: “Cutezatorul” and “EcoAgriNord” of Falesti town; “Vitality” of Tiraspol, and “Belyi most” of Chitcani village of Slobozia district. The common activities carried out within the cooperation platform are financed by the European Union through the Support to Confidence Building Measures Program that is implemented by UNDP Moldova. In a press release, the project’s team says the project will last for 16 months and will contribute to changing the rural development paradigm, reducing or minimizing the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides and to employing the crop rotation principle. There will be set up thee demonstrative plots for cultivating corn, sunflower and strawberries. These will convince the farmers of the advantages of using environment-friendly technologies to cultivate land without using chemical substances.
Agreement to attract Italian investors to energy efficiency sector
The Energy Efficiency Agency and the Moldovan-Italian Chamber of Trade signed a cooperation agreement that envisions the intensification of activities aimed at attracting Italian investors to the energy efficiency sector and the utilization of renewable sources of energy in Moldova. The agreement was signed by the Agency’s director Mihail Stratan and the Chamber of Trade’s chairman Mauro Salvatori. The latter said the experience in facilitating the work of Italian energy companies in Moldova inspires hope. “We staged a lot of conferences and seminars for those who are interested in energy efficiency and the signing of the agreement with the Energy Efficiency Agency shows that we are near Moldova and we think we will be able to help the enterprises to invest here,” stated Mauro Salvatori.
France is a preferred market for Moldovan honey, study
With an annual consumption of 35,000 tonnes of bee honey, almost 24,000 tonnes of which are imported, France is the main market for Moldovan honey, shows a market study commissioned by the Moldova Investment Attraction and Export Promotion Organization that was presented to Moldovan beekeepers. Honey is the only product of animal origin that is exported in consistent quantities to the EU and only the honey meets the EU sanitary requirements for products of animal origin.
