President Maia Sandu requested Minister of Agriculture Ion Perju to work out, in consultation with representatives of farmers, the criteria and mechanism for distributing the assistance in the form of diesel fuel that will be donated by Romania. The subject was discussed by Maia Sandu with acting Prime Minister Aureliu Ciocoi and Minister of Agriculture, Regional Development and Environment Ion Perju in the evening of February 12, IPN reports, quoting the presidential press service.

“I insisted that the assistance should reach as many farmers as possible and that that the fuel should be given primarily to those who need it the most so as to help them save their businesses during these difficult times,” said President Sandu. She also requested Minister Perju to find solutions to reanimate the local agricultural consulting services so that the farmers could swiftly get advice from specialists and to also hasten the launch the subsidization mechanism in the animal breeding sector.

On February 8, Maia Sandu announced through her official Facebook page that the Government of Romania approved the provision of humanitarian assistance in the form of 6,000 tonnes of diesel fuel intended for Moldovan farmers who suffered because of the drought. “All the necessary procedures are to be performed for the diesel fuel to reach the farmers. We will monitor the equitable distribution of the fuel,” she wrote then.