Moldova and Ukraine signed the Social Memorandum of the Energy Community in the opening of the Social Forum held in Chisinau, Info-Prim Neo reports. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy Valeriu Lazar said the market reforms, including in the energy sector, must take into account the interests of the investors, system operators and consumers. “Any reform is intended for the people. That’s why we will demand that the energy project should take account of the social dimension that would guarantee the protection of consumers’ rights,” he stated. Ukrainian Deputy Minister of Fuel and Energy Volodymyr Makukha said the memorandum is an important document that will enable Ukraine to make use of the good practices concerning consumer protection that exist in the member countries of the Energy Community. “This is now important when we intend to use the same tariff for all the users in the natural gas supply system for example. Thus, additional measures are needed to protect the people on low incomes. There are problems related to the protection of employees of energy companies that undergo restructuring. The experience of other countries is also interesting in this respect,” said Volodymyr Makukha. Attending the opening of the Social Forum of the Energy Community, the Head of the EU Delegation to Moldova Dirk Schuebel said the European Union will support the reforms in Moldova’s energy sector, including financially. According to him, it is very important to strengthen the dialogue of the Government and the ministry drafting policies in this area with the trade unions, employers and representatives of civil society so as to correctly identify the deprived groups of people that will be helped and provided access to energy resources.