The Association of Independent Press (API), together with five newspapers based in Soroca, Rezina, Ungheni, Cimislia and Chisinau municipality, during a year will monitor how transparently and efficiently the public money allocated for the rehabilitation and maintenance of local roads has been used. The activities are staged within the project “Assessment of transparency in the budgetary process and use of public money intended for road infrastructure by journalistic monitoring and investigations” that is supported by the Embassy of Finland in Bucharest, IPN reports.

In a press release, the API says that during the 12 months (September 2016 – August 2017), the regional newspapers will inform the inhabitants of the five districts about the priority road segments that will benefit from financing in 2017, the way in which the public procurement contests to choose contractors for repairing local roads were held, what the quality of the executed roads is, etc.

The journalists will facilitate the organization of public consultations where the inhabitants will be invited to discuss and identify the road segments that need to be allocated public money the firstl. Afterward, the proposals will be transmitted to the district councils and the Chisinau Municipal Council for taking them into consideration when agreeing the local budgets for 2017.

The publications will stage debates with the involvement of carriers, public functionaries, representatives of civil society and the business sector concerning the possibility of improving the mechanisms for planning and using the Road Fund and local incomes for improving local road infrastructure. The conclusions and proposals will be made public and will be transmitted to local and national decision makers.