There are active non-governmental organizations in the Republic of Moldova, which make their voices heard, but there is no collective body that would formulate and debate a coordinated position on the bills debated by the Cabinet. At a roundtable meeting, representatives of civil society proposed constituting the Economic and Social Committee in Moldova for such a purpose, IPN reports.

The executive director of the Independent Think Tank “Expert-Grup” Adrian Lupușor said that in the member states of the European Union there is an Economic and Social Committee that obliges all members of civil society to debate internally and to formulate a common position before submitting to the Cabinet a public opinion on the draft laws. Such a body also provides a rigorous mechanism for public consultation and the draft laws are mandatorily endorsed by the respective committee.

Liliana Palihovici, president of the Public Association “Institutum Virtutes Civilis”, said that at the level of the European Union, the Economic and Social Committee is a platform through which the European institutions consult civil society of all 27 member countries. States delegate members to this platform from among representatives of trade unions, employers’ associations and civil society organisations and none of the decisions of the European Parliament or Council are put on the agenda for discussion and approved without the opinions of this committee.

“This platform brings together all the actors who discuss and formulate a common opinion. They collect proposals from all parties, negotiate the most appropriate option for the society in which that law, regulation, normative document will be put into practice,” explained the president of the public association “Institutum Virtutes Civilis”. Liliana Palihovici noted that this instrument can have another name in Moldova and should not be necessarily approved in the immediate future, but it is a topic that must be widely discussed by all actors in society in order to reach the format that best suits the realities in the Republic of Moldova.

Secretary of state of the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection Corina Ajder said that the European Union is about balanced policies adopted transparently, taking into account the interests of all groups. “The Republic of Moldova badly needs a better balance in the adoption of social policies, as well as increased transparency. I come here with cautious optimism. I would like to believe that this instrument will not be just an additional one to the already existing ones, but it will be one capable of changing the way we make decisions with an impact on our citizens,” stated Corina Ajder.

Deputy head of the Office for European Integration Rodica Jereghi said that European integration is not only a process of cooperation with the European institutions. It is a profound process of internal transformation of the country and this transformation requires everyone’s involvement. Rodica Jereghi encouraged civil society to be more active, stressing that the Office is ready to cooperate takes into account any made comment. “Our goal is to have a society in which everyone participates because the change in legislation and the European integration process must have an impact on everyone,” she stated.

Igor Zubcu, head of the National Trade Union Confederation of Moldova, said that the national trade union movement welcomes the initiative to constitute the Economic and Social Committee in Moldova, by the model of the European Union, and considers that such a committee will become a platform for interaction, exchange of opinions and identification of the common denominator. Igor Zubcu expressed his conviction that this initiative will strengthen the civic dialogue, will only add value to the process of joining the European Union and can muster much better support from civil society for European integration.

The round table was organized by the Independent Think Tank “Expert-Grup” in partnership with the Institute for European Policies and Reforms, “Institutum Virtutes Civilis” and the Friedrich Ebert Foundation.