The government will soon announce a one-round tender to select private partners for developing the activities of the National Lottery of Moldova, IPN reports.

Gambling in Moldova is under the monopoly of the government, which will soon sign two private-public partnership (PPP) contracts. The first concerns the development of the National Lottery of Moldova and sports betting, including via electronic means of communications. The second PPP contract concerns the development of the slot machine business.

According to the Ministry of Economy and Infrastructure, both projects require serious investments, especially the slot machines project. Because of this, the government included among the eligibility criteria for tender participants that of being a slot machine manufacturer. This will exclude intermediaries, reduce the investment cost and its payback period.

The duration of the PPP projects will be at least 15 years.

The estimated benefits of the implementation of these two PPPs include 140 million lei in dividends and 32 million lei in taxes, as well as the creation of 680 jobs. Other advantages are the diversification and modernization of the National Lottery’s activities, increased control over the field of gambling and the reduction of their social costs.

According to the Public Property Agency’s website, the first PPP in Moldova was launched in 2010. The project is still ongoing and concerns the creation of the Radiological and Diagnostic Imaging Service. Since then, 11 other PPPs of national interest have been started, among them the concession of the Chisinau International Airport in order to modernize its services and infrastructure, the construction of apartment buildings for the employees of some public enterprises and institutions, the rehabilitation of important edifices, the development of healthcare services, the extension of centralized aqueduct systems and the development of rural tourism.