The state-owned enterprise “Naval Register” and the public institution “Giurgiulesti Port Captainship” will be merged to form the Naval Agency of the Republic of Moldova, IPN reports, quoting a bill approved by the Government.

The Naval Agency will work out and put into practice the state policies on maritime transport and internal navigable ways, will monitor the implementation of international agreements on naval transport and will ensure the functionality of the Giurgiulesti Port Complex.

The Agency will be controlled by the Ministry of Transport and Road Infrastructure, but will be a self-financing institution with an autonomous budget. Minister Iurie Chirinciuc said the fact that Moldova was put on the ‘blacklist’ of the Paris Memorandum of Understanding on Port State Control points to the inefficiency of the current inspection body, which is the Giurgiulesti Port Captainship.

“Moldova’s exclusion from this blacklist will be a priority of the new Agency and is also an objective defined in the Association Agreement with the EU and the Transport and Logistics Strategy for 2013-2020,” stated Iurie Chirinciuc.

The official considers the creation of the Naval Agency will strengthen the efforts made to reduce the number of ships that do not meet the criteria stipulated in international conventions, which stop at the Giurgiulesti Port and pose a threat to the ecological security.

According to the Ministry of Transport and Road Infrastructure, 40% of the goods destined for domestic trade and 70% of those destined for foreign trade are transported by maritime ways.